


LIBRARY OF THE THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 
PRINCETON. N. J. 


PRESENTED BY 


Whe Tublishers. 


HVA Goa 
Coleman, Sydney H. 
Humane society leaders in 


America 


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Humane Society Leaders in America 





RICHARD MARTIN 


Father of humane legislation in the British 
Parliament 


HUMANE 
SOCIETY LEADERS 
IN AMERICA 


With a Sketch of the Early History 


of 
THE HUMANE MOVEMENT IN ENGLAND 


By Sypney H.’Coteman 


Formerly Managing Editor of 


THE NATIONAL HUMANE REVIEW 





PUBLISHED BY 
THE AMERICAN HUMANE ASSOCIATION 
AtBany New York 
1924 


Copyright, 1924 
by 
THE AMERICAN HUMANE ASSOCIATION 


From the Press of 
Frank H Evory & Co 
Albany N Y 


CHAPTER 


I. 


II. 


III. 


VI. 


Vil. 


VIII. 


TABLE OF CONTENTS 


Early History of the Humane 
Movement 


Henry Bergh: Founder of the 
Anticruelty Cause in America 


Elbridge T. Gerry and the Pre- 
vention of Cruelty to Children 


George T’. Angell: the Apostle of 
Humane Education . 


William O. Stillman and The 


American Humane Association 


Men Prominent in Humane W ork 
in the United States 


American Women and their Noble 
Efforts for Humanity 


Other Organizations for the Pro- 
tection of Animals Connected 
with the Humane Movement 


PAGE 


13 


33 


65 


89 


115 


143 


177 


203 


CHAPTER 


IX. Other Movements for Child Saving 
Developed from Anticruelty 
W ork 


X. Condensed History of The Ameri- 
ean Humane Association 


PAGE 


223 


2AT 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


FACING PAGE 
American Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Animals, New York hie 
Headquarters of 48 
Angell, George T. 89 
Angell Memorial Hospital, Maser ctraectts 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 


to Animals, Boston, Mass. ! OT, 
Baldwin, Frank L. A ; } : 172 
Bergh, Henry : ; Ve 
Blaffer, Miss Alva C. ! : t Er Are 
Bowden, Mrs. R. Fleming . ! 92 
Bradley, Welcome W. : 224 
Brown, Edwin L. : f ; . 250 
Coulter, Col. Ernest K. : : 80 
Dustin, Mrs. Edith L. . : f ae LO 
Gerry, Commodore Elbridge T. 65 
Gerry, Hon. Peter G. : } . 69 
Hardy, Mrs. Richard : : 177 
Hatch, Miss Stella T. : : oy a hep 
Horton, W. K. y , : : 57 
Kelso aus. ; ; { : mr oo A 
Lovell, Mrs. Mary F. ; M 165 
Martin, Richard . g : Ienrisciecs 


McCurrie, Matthew . : ; : 172 


FACING PAGE 


Mohawk and Hudson River Humane 
Society, and since 1906 Headquarters 
for The American Humane Associ- 


ation, Albany, N. Y., Headquarters of 126 


Morgan, Kugene : 
Morris, Miss Elizabeth 
Muckle, Col. M. Richards 
Murray, R. H. 


172 
192 
145 
224 


New York Society for the Brereton of 


Cruelty to Children, New York City, 


Headquarters of 
Partridge, John 
Pearson, T. Gilbert 
Preston, H. Clay . 
Preston, Mrs. H. Clay 
Richardson, Guy 
Ross, John G. 

Rowley, Dr. Francis ie 
Rutherford, Frank B. 
Ryder, Mrs. Jeannette 
Scott, George A. H. 
Shortall, John G. : 
Smith, Mrs. Huntington 
Speyer, Mrs. James 
Stillman, Dr. W. O. 
Swanton, Mrs. F. W. 
Walker, N. J. 


White, Mrs. Caroline Earle 


White, M. J. 
Wilkin, Hon. Robert af 


76 
172 
224 
209 
ii 
209 
224) 
112 
209 
192 
209 
24'7 
ee 
Ly, 
115 
192 
209 
160 
224 
172 


HE copy for this book was written 

in 1922 and later revised by Dr. 
William O. Stillman, then President of The 
American Humane Association. The text 
was in the hands of the publisher just be- 
fore Dr. Stillman’s lamented death, March 
15th, 1924, and appears as he arranged it. 


AUTHOR 


July 15, 1924 


r I fi t 
RiP te Py 

ian 
7 





CuaptTer I 


EARLY HISTORY OF THE HUMANE 
MOVEMENT 


HE anticruelty movement is one hundred 
dp years old. Its history dates from that 
hard-won struggle in the English Parlia- 
ment, waged by Richard (“ Humanity”) Mar- 
tin, in 1822, for the first effective legislation in 
the world for the protection of animals. The 
century that has intervened since that time has 
been richer than all previous ages in establishing 
human and sub-human rights. Brilliant as has 
been this advancement, ages still must pass be- 
fore the inequalities of life will be settled; before 
war ceases to be the approved mode of handling 
international differences; before the Golden Rule 
will be accepted as the true basis for man’s nor- 
mal guidance. 

Animals were first recognized in the ethics of 
the Indian Aryans, probably through their ac- 
ceptance of the doctrine of transmigration. 
Buddhism brought about a tender consideration 
of animals that has never been exceeded any- 
where in the world. The early Persians were 
taught by the Zoroastrian code to treat the brute 

13 : 


14 Humane Society Leaders in America 


creation with kindness. Even the teachings of 
Islam placed the rights of animals on a par with 
those required by old Hebrew ethics. Seneca, 
Plutarch, Porphyry and other philosophers and 
poets, preached kindness to animals as a founda- 
tion for character building. Early Christianity 
reacted from these progressive views because of 
their pagan origin. Sub-human life was regarded 
as soulless and to be treated only as a vehicle by 
which man might achieve his selfish ends. HKven 
the beautiful legends of animals that came from 
the hermit monks and the ascetics of the middle 
ages did little to alleviate the hard lot levied upon 
the brute world. 

It is not difficult to understand the general 
disregard of animal rights, however, in view of 
the very general lack of sympathy for the unfor- 
tunate members of human society. Years of 
leavening were required before the spirit of 
mercy, that includes all sentient life, could make 
itself felt sufficiently to right the wrongs of those 
who could not wage their own fight for recogni- 
tion. Witness in our own United States, as late 
as 1860, the fratricidal struggle that threatened 
our national life because a great section claimed 
the right to barter in human flesh. 

Toward the close of the eighteenth century, 
England became greatly stirred by the writings 
of Jeremy Bentham, who insisted that moral 
rights should be the basis upon which legislation 


Early History of the Humane Movement 15 


is to be founded. In the words of John Stuart 
Mill, ““ He seemed to open a clearer and broader 
conception of what human opinion and institu- 
tions ought to be, how they might be made what 
they ought to be, and how far removed from it 
they are now.” * This was the period in which 
John Howard and Elizabeth Fry were launch- 
ing their vigorous campaigns against the horrors 
and cruelties of the prison system. Sir Richard 
Oastler was leading his fight against black slav- 
ery and was soon to demand, with Sir Robert 
Peel, that safeguards be thrown round the 
health and morals of apprentices employed in 
cotton and other mills. 

In 1800, English law recognized two hundred 
offenses as punishable by death. Children were 
hung for trivial crimes. The apprentice system 
had developed into child peonage that almost 
equalled the cruelties of black slavery. Pauper 
children and foundlings were virtually sold into 
factory drudgery where they labored from twelve 
to twenty hours a day, under the lash of the over- 
seer in the midst of insanitary conditions that 
defy description. The mortality among these 
children was appalling but so engrafted was the 
system on the industrial life of England, that 
years passed before relief was secured. ‘The 
prisons were stench holes and “ beds of iniquity ” 


* Autobiography of John Stuart Mill. 


16 Humane Society Leaders in America 


into which men and women were thrown, with 
little or no excuse, for debt and at the whim of 
the ruling classes. The insane were incarcerated 
in jails or asylums with no official inspection or 
oversight. Imbecile children were disposed of by 
officials for the poor by requiring that at least one 
be taken with every twenty normal children ap- 
prenticed to the cotton factories. What became 
of them can only too readily be imagined for they 
were useless to the mill owners and speedily dis- 
appeared from sight. 

England had long been the scene of brutal ani- 
mal sports that, in a measure, compared to those 
of the black days of Titus, Nero, and Trajan. 
Erasmus, in describing his visit to England dur- 
ing the reign of Henry VIII, wrote: “ Many 
herds of bears are maintained in this country for 
the purpose of baiting.” Queen Elizabeth fre- 
quently entertained her guests with bear-baiting. 
Dog, cock, and wild animal fights were the pas- 
times of the common people. In 1857, Thomas 
Cartwright complained that “ If there be a bear 
or a bull to be baited in the afternoon, or a jack- 
anapes to ride on horse-back, the minister hurries 
the service over in shameful manner, in order to 
be present at the show.”’ Sir Richard Steele 
bemoaned the fact in the Tatler, that the French 
believed the Britons had been made fierce and 


? Strutt’s Sports and Pastimes, 1868. 


Early History of the Humane Movement 17 


cruel by the bull-baiting, prize fighting and bear 
gardens. “I wish I knew how to answer this re- 
proach which is cast upon us, and excuse the 
death of so many innocent cocks, bulls, dogs, and 
bears, as have been set together by the ears, or 
died an untimely death, only to make us sport.” ® 

Gradually these sports ceased to receive royal 
favor, not so much because they were degrading 
as because they became scenes of rioting and dis- 
cord. Bull- and bear-baiting, however, long re- 
mained the principal amusement of the lowest 
and most degraded of the people. They were 
not outlawed without strenuous opposition and 
continued to be held clandestinely long after the 
passage of the law. 

The minds of men were unconsciously being 
prepared for the epoch making humane legisla- 
tion of 1822, by many thoughtful writers of the 
eighteenth century. It is certain that only a few 
of them received an extensive hearing. They did, 
however, exert a powerful influence upon those 
who were finally to wage an open fight in 
Britain’s legislative body. Bernard de Mande- 
ville (1723), in his quaint and severely criticised 
“* Fable of the Bees,” touched upon the slaughter 
of animals. “I can’t imagine,” he wrote, “ how 
a man, not hardened in blood and massacre, is 
able to see a violent death, and the pangs of it, 


®No. 134, dated Thursday, February 16, 1709. 
2 


18 Humane Society Leaders in America 


without concern.” John Hildrop, M. A., pub- 
lished his “ Free Thoughts upon the Brute Crea- 
tion,” in 1742. It possessed few notable fea- 
tures and probably had little influence in com- 
parison with the work of the Rev. Humphrey 
Primatt, D.D., whose book entitled “ A Disser- 
tation on the Duty of Mercy and Sin of Cruelty 
to Brute Animals,” was written in 1776. Some 
of his pleas, in behalf of the kindly care of ani- 
mals were woven later into the argument of Lord 
Erskine during his memorable debates in Parlia- 
ment for the passage of laws to protect animals 
from cruelty. ‘“ See that no brute of any kind,” 
wrote Dr. Primatt, “whether intrusted to thy 
care, or coming in thy way, suffer thy neglect or 
abuse. Let no views of profit, no compliance 
with custom, and no fear of ridicule of the world, 
ever tempt thee to the least act of cruelty or in- 
justice to any creature whatsoever. But let this 
be your invariable rule, everywhere, and at all 
times, to do unto others as, in their condition, you 
would be done unto.” 

Soame Jenyns (1704-1787), who clashed on 
several occasions with Samuel Johnson, devoted 
a chapter to the treatment of animals in his 
“ Disquisitions on Several Subjects,” published 
in 1772. His popularity as a politician caused 
his writings to be quite generally perused. 
Jeremy Bentham, to whom reference has been 
made, had a greater influence on the thought of his 


Early History of the Humane Movement 19 


time than any one who had heretofore written on 
the humane treatment of animals. The “ Intro- 
duction to the Principles of Morals and Legis- 
lation,” (London, 1781), was closely studied by 
an increasingly large number of advanced think- 
ers and favorably influenced the passage of much 
legislation of humanitarian character. In the 
chapter on “ Limits between Private Ethics and 
the Art of Legislation,’ Bentham shows that 
there is no reason why animals should not be 
accorded protection under the law. Then occurs 
this pointed sentence: “ The question is not, Can 
they reason? nor, Can they talk? but, Can they 
suffer? ” 

The work of John Lawrence has never been 
given the credit it deserves in the literature of 
the humane movement. He was a friend of Lord 
Erskine and was consulted by the latter when 
preparing his speech on animal protection de- 
livered in Parliament in 1809. He was a great 
horse fancier and frequent contributor to the 
English Sporting Magazine. Lawrence as- 
serted that legislation was necessary before there 
could be universal recognition of animal rights. 
He pointed out the importance of teaching the 
child to treat his pets kindly and urged the 
clergy to preach on the subject of kindness to 
animals. He also strongly opposed the practice 
of vivisection. His fearless denunciation of 
hunting animals “of a timid and harmless na- 


20 Humane Society Leaders in America 


ture’ as “a mean and contemptible exercise of 
cruelty,” and the riding of horses to death in the 
chase as “the greatest abuse in hunting,” 
brought down upon his head the wrath and ridi- 
cule of the sporting gentry. His thorough horse- 
manship, however, gave him a standing in the 
world of sport that caused his writings to be 
eagerly read by this very class. His book, “A 
Philosophical and Practical ‘Treatise on Horses ” 
(London, 1796), contains many passages of such 
advanced views on animal protection that they 
might well have been written within the past few 
years. Shortly following the publication of this 
book, a bill was introduced in Parliament to pro- 
hibit bull baiting but it was so strongly opposed 
that nothing came of it. Krskine was then a 
member of the House of Commons. He referred 
to the defeat of the measure at the time he was 
making his own appeal for animal protection 
legislation. Another book “ On the Conduct of 
Man to Inferior Animals,” by George Nichol- 
son, Manchester, 1797, and “ An Essay on Hu- 
manity to Animals,” by Thomas Young, Fellow 
of Trinity College, Cambridge, London, 1798, 
were other writings of this period that helped to 
prepare the way for legislation for animals. 

It was on May 15, 1809,° erroneously stated 
by nearly all writers of humane history as 1811, 


*Hansard, Parliamentary Debates, First Series, 14, April 11, 
1809 to June 21, 1809. 


Early History of the Humane Movement 21 


that Lord Erskine arose in Parliament and deliv- 
ered his carefully prepared address in behalf of 
the bill he had introduced for the protection of 
animals. This marked the first time that this 
subject was ever seriously debated by a powerful 
legislative body.’ His speech, which was force- 
ful and logical, subjected him to much ridicule 
and abuse, but he remained immovable and un- 
perturbed. The bill passed the House of Lords 
and would probably have passed the Commons if 
it had not been introduced so late in the session. 
As it was, it was defeated only by a vote of 37 to 
27. The following year Lord Erskine reintro- 
duced the measure, but opposition had now 
grown so strong against it, in spite of many 
amendments to meet the wishes of his colleagues, 
that he withdrew it. Apparently Erskine felt 
the futility of following up the fight he had made 
so courageously in its behalf. 

In Lord Erskine’s opening address he had 
pleaded earnestly that “They (animals) are 
created, indeed, for our use, but not for our abuse. 
Their freedom and enjoyment, when they cease 
to be consistent with our just dominion and en- 
joyment, can be no part of their natures; but 
whilst they are consistent I say their rights, sub- 
servient as they are, ought to be as sacred as our 
renin Nathaniel Ward, an English minister, who had been 
trained as ‘a lawyer, prepared the first code of Massachusetts law 


in 1641, known as The Body of Liberties, he included a section 
on animal protection. 


22 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


own. * * * Jam to ask your Lordships, in 
the name of that God who gave to man his do- 
minion over the lower world, to acknowledge and 
recognize that dominion to be a moral trust.” In 
closing his argument he said: “ The extension of 
benevolence to objects beneath us, become 
habitual by a sense of duty inculcated by law, 
will reflect back upon our sympathies to one an- 
other, so that I may venture to say firmly to 
your Lordships, that the bill I propose to you, if it 
shall receive the sanction of Parliament, will not 
only be an honor to the country, but an era in the 
history of the world.” 

The bill was opposed in a lengthy argument 
by William Windham, an influential member at 
that time. Among others who spoke against the 
measure were Lord Ellenborough and Lord 
Redesdale. The latter had been the chief oppo- 
nent of the earlier bill to prohibit bull baiting. 
Among those in the House of Commons who 
spoke in favor of the bill were Sir Samuel 
Romilly, William Wilberforce and James Ste- 
phen, all of whom were active in the anti-slavery 
movement of that time. 

Lord Erskine had not the satisfaction of 
seeing his bill become law, but his long experi- 
ence in public life must have convinced him that 
it was only a matter of time before the principles 
for which he contended must be recognized by 
legislation. There was no justice in the charge 


Early History of the Humane Movement 23 


made against him in the debates, that the measure 
was introduced merely, “To have done that 
which no one yet had ever thought of doing; to 
have introduced into legislation at this period of 
the world, what had never been found in the laws 
of any country, and that, too, for the purpose of 
professed humanity or rather of something more 
than humanity as commonly understood and 
practiced, to be the first who had stood up as the | 
champion of brutes, was as marked a distinction, 
even if it should not turn out upon examination to 
be as proud a one, as a man could well aspire 
to.” ° Many of Erskine’s public acts might have 
justified this severe criticism by his opponent had 
not his love of animals always been an outstand- 
ing feature of his life. He had many pets, in- 
cluding “a dog that he introduced at consulta- 
tions, a goose and even two leeches.” In 1807, 
he had published privately a pamphlet entitled 
“ An Appeal in Favour of the Agricultural Ser- 
vices of Rooks.” It must have helped to ease’ 
the unhappy close of his life to know that a new 
champion had arisen in Parliament for his ani- 
mal friends and that his efforts to secure legisla- 
tion were ultimately successful. 

The new standard-bearer was Richard Martin, 
a member of Parliament from Galway, Ireland. 
Martin had been a member of the House since 


* Hansard, Parliamentary Debates, First Series, 14, Page 804. 
7 Dictionary National Biography, Vol. XVII, Page 443. 


24 Humane Society Leaders in America 


1801 and probably heard Lord Erskine’s master- 
ful plea for the rights of animals in 1809. His 
heart must have been thrilled with the nobility of 
the purpose for his sense of justice and his love 
of animals were ruling passions of his life. On 
his 200,000 acre estate, there are the ruins, on 
the shores of Lake Ballinahinch, of an ancient 
structure known as “ Dick Martin’s Prison.” In 
it, he was wont to confine such of his tenants as 
sinned against the laws of humanity towards the 
brute creation. He introduced bills in Parlia- 
ment to abolish the death penalty for forgery, and 
to grant counsel for persons charged with capi- 
tal crimes. His keen interest in all humanitarian 
measures caused George IV, his personal friend, 
to call him ‘‘ Humanity Martin,” a title by which 
he is fondly known to-day wherever animal pro- 
tection is practiced.* 

Martin had given the matter of animal protec- 
tion no little thought and bided his time to intro- 
duce his bill in Parliament until conditions 
seemed propitious for prompt action. It was 
said by Lawrence that the law was “ smuggled ” 
through by Tory votes in spite of Liberal oppo- 
sition. At any rate, Martin had to face much 
ridicule on the floor and overcome the objections 
of Lord Henry Brougham, a staunch anti- 
slavery reformer, and the then powerful Chan- 


* Dictionary of National Biography. 


Early History of the Humane Movement 25 


ning and Peel. While Martin was speaking on 
his measure, a member uttered a cat-call in deri- 
sion. He turned quickly in his place and said: 
“Tf the person who has just insulted me will 
retire to the committee room I will explain the 
bill to him.”” No one responded, for this great- 
hearted Irishman had a reputation as a duelist 
that few cared to dispute. William Jerdan re- 
lates in his chapter ° on Martin that in one of his 
speeches in the House of Commons upon the 
subject “the orator was interrupted by ironical 
cheers; but he went on to the end without stop 
or notice and when he had finished, stepped 
quietly across the floor towards the quarter 
whence the noise had proceeded, and with infinite 
mildness of manner presumed to ask who it was 
that cried, “ Hare! Hare!’ No reply was vouch- 
safed to the question but one member slyly 
pointed to a Commoner from London as the 
guilty person. Martin thereupon exclaimed 
‘Oh! Was it only an Alderman?’ Turning on 
his heel he walked back to his place. 

“ On one occasion Martin was greatly incensed 
at the report of his speech in the Morning Post. 
When he called upon the editor for an explana- 
tion, the latter stated ‘ that it was written by one 
of the most intelligent and accurate reporters 
upon his staff, and he could hardly imagine any 


*°Men I Have Known, Pages 312-321, published by George Rout- 
ledge & Sons, London, 1866. 


26 Humane Society Leaders in America 


(far less any deliberate) intention to misrepre- 
sent the Honorable gentleman.’ ‘To this excuse, 
the complainant only replied by pulling a copy 
of the paper out of his pocket and indignantly 
pointing to the obnoxious passage, exclaiming, 
‘Sir, Did I ever spake in Italics?’ ‘The effect 
was so ludicrous that both parties burst into a fit 
of laughter and the affair was compromised with- 
out rancor or bloodshed.” 

When the law was finally on the statute books, 
June 10, 1822, it became known as “ Dick 
Martin’s Act.” It marked the beginning of that 
“new era” that Erskine prophesied would fol- 
low the passage of such a law. Many years have 
elapsed since Martin’s time; scores of consecrated 
men and women have given unstintingly of them- 
selves to the humane cause; societies have been 
organized in practically every civilized country 
in the world for the express purpose of protect- 
ing animals from abuse, and yet the brutalizing 
work of the cruelist is still in evidence. ‘The ef- 
forts put forth at such a cost, however, have not 
been lost. Each passing year finds the lot of 
additional thousands of animals made easier be- 
cause of the pioneer labor of Richard Martin. 
He refused a peerage from his monarch, but his 
name has been placed among the immortals by 
an ever growing host of admirers throughout the 
world. 


1? Hansard, Volume 7, Pages 873-874. 


Early History of the Humane Movement 27 


Martin discovered, as did Bergh some forty 
years later in America, that the mere passage of 
law was not sufficient to wipe out cruelty. Dur- 
ing the next few years that he remained in Lon- 
don he was constantly stopping offenders on the 
streets and bringing them to the bar of justice. 
This is particularly referred to in Burke’s Vicis- 
situdes of Families: * “ Nor did he content him- 
self with having obtained this parliamentary de- 
fence for his four-footed clients and then leaving 
the carrying of it out to others; he was equally 
strenuous in seeing that they had the full benefit 
of the law enacted for their protection.” He was 
frequently abused by the unsympathetic public 
and his cases treated with derision by the courts 
themselves. But he never despaired. The cour- 
age that made his name respected in dueling 
enabled him to face his detractors fearlessly and 
secure Justice when one less resolute must have 
failed. 

In the Sporting Magazine for October, 1822, 
appears the report of a meeting held in Septem- 
ber of that year at “Old Slaughter’s Coffee 
House,” in St. Martin’s Lane, London, to form 
a society “ for the preventing, as far as possible, 
the cruel treatment of brute animals.” A com- 
mittee of twelve was appointed at this time to 
consider ways and means. Martin was a member 
of this group and a leader in the movement that 


4 Fourth Edition, 1860, Page 65, 


28 Humane Society Leaders in America 


ultimately led to the organization of the Society 
for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, on 
June 16, 1824, at a meeting at which Rev. Arthur 
Broome presided. ‘The committee drew up the 
following plan of operations which includes 
nearly every activity commonly undertaken by 
anticruelty societies of the present day: 


“1. The circulation of suitable tracts gratui- 
tously, or by cheap sale, particularly among per- 
sons intrusted with cattle, such as coachmen, 
carters, and drovers. 

“2. The introduction into schools of books 
calculated to impress on youth the duty of hu- 
manity to inferior animals. 

‘3. Frequent appeals to the public through 
the press, awakening more general attention to a 
subject so interesting, though too much 
neglected. 


“4. The periodical delivery of discourses 
from the pulpit. 

“5. The employment of constables in the 
markets and streets; and 

“6. The prosecution of persons guilty of 
flagrant acts of cruelty, with publicity to the pro- 
ceedings, and announcements of results.” 


This was the first permanent organization in 
the world for the protection of animals. Some 
years before, in 1809, an advertisement appeared 
in the papers of Liverpool announcing a meeting 


Early History of the Humane Movement 29 


for “gentlemen only” to inaugurate “The 
Liverpool Society for Preventing Wanton Cru- 
elty to Brute Animals.” Unfortunately, its ex- 
istence was brief and feeble. Some twenty-five 
years later a similar effort was made by “ ladies 
only.” It also failed. The Royal Society, at 
London, did not begin its work of establishing 
.branches until 1841, when those in Norwich and 
Liverpool were founded. 

The Martin law, enacted in 1822, was known 
as “ An Act to Prevent the Cruel and Improper 
Treatment of Cattle.” It was the product of 
compromise. ‘The popularity of hunting and 
other blood sports among the landed and titled 
classes and the demand for bull and bear baiting, 
and cock and dog fights among the poorer people 
in England made it necessary to steer a middle 
course in order to insure its passage. It sought 
to punish persons who wantonly and cruelly beat 
or ill-treated the horse, mare, gelding, mule, ass, 
ox, cow, heifer, steer, sheep or other cattle by a 
fine of not more than five pounds or less than ten 
shillings, or imprisonment not exceeding three 
months. 

This law enabled the society to attack many 
of the flagrant abuses to animals that were then 
common, but its members were greatly disturbed 
because of its limitations. In 1833 an amend- 
ment was secured in Parliament which provided 
punishment for those who stoned or beat cattle 


30 Humane Society Leaders in America 


in driving them. It was under this act that the 
bull, dog and lamb received their first legal pro- 
tection, and the baiting and fighting of dogs, 
bulls, bears, badgers and cocks were prohibited. 
The latter provisions were so unpopular with the 
masses that their enforcement was delayed for 
several years. 

Further extension of the English law was 
secured in 1835. At this time, any persons who 
“wantonly and cruelly beat, ill-treat, abuse or 
torture any domestic animals,’ became subject 
tothe law. Those who kept or impounded animals 
were enjoined to feed them and those maintain- 
ing ‘“ Knackers’ yards” were required to kill 
their animals within three days after their receipt. 
The early acts were amended and consolidated by 
the Cruelty to Animal Acts of 1849 and 1854. 
Under these acts the word animal was defined as 
any “domestic animal” of whatever kind or 
species, and whether a quadruped or not. The 
dubbing of cocks, the cropping of dogs’ ears and 
dehorning of cattle were classified as offences. 
Under the act of 1854 the use of dogs for draft 
purposes was prohibited throughout England. 

By the act of 1876 the practice of vivisection 
was regulated by Parliament. It was also made 
unlawful to maliciously poison animals. Under 
the “ Wild Animals in Captivity Protection Act 
of 1900,” the term “‘ animal ” is broadened to in- 
clude bird, beast, fish, or reptile. Besides these 


Early History of the Hwmane Movement 31 


acts referred to there have been many special laws 
passed by the British Parliament for the protec- 
tion and care of animals. The acts of 1849 and 
1854 are the basis upon which legislation for ani- 
mals elsewhere has been founded.” 

During the first years of the English Society, 
the founders struggled against great difficulties. 
The public was unsympathetic; funds were scant; 
the courts gave little assistance. Yet the Society 
kept tenaciously at its task, educating people to 
higher regard for the rights of the brute world 
and warning and prosecuting those guilty of 
cruelty. 

Royalty eventually took note of its good work. 
Queen Victoria became its patron and in 1840 
gave permission to attach the prefix Royal to its 
title. Since that time its work has grown to large 
proportions. Its agents are scattered through- 
out England, Wales and Ireland. A vast amount 
of valuable humane literature has been prepared 
and published. Its chief publication is the Anvi- 
mal W orld which was suggested to its Secretary, 
John Colam, in 1869, by George T. Angell, 
of Boston. The magazine has been published con- 
tinuously since that date and is regarded as one 
of the finest of its class. 


% The Law Relating to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, 
London, 1906. For a rather full account of humane legislation 
for animals, see an article by George A. H. Scott, published in 
The National Humane Review, Vol. IV, Pages 3, 4, 23, 46, 47, 
57, and 70. 


32 Humane Society Leaders in America 


The active direction of the Royal Society for 
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is at pres- 
ent in the hands of its able Chief Secretary, Cap- 
tain Edward G. Fairholme, who is well known to 
American humanitarians. He visited this coun- 
try in 1910 to take part in the International Hu- 
mane Congress held in Washington, and again in 
1923 to attend the Second American World 
Humane Conference. The Royal Society pro- 
vided many thousands of dollars worth of veteri- 
nary supplies and built several hospitals for the 
horses of the British forces during the world war 
of 1914-1918. The Royal S. P. C. A. also fur- 
nished a considerable personnel toward staffing 
the hospitals, and many assistants to the veteri- 
nary corps. Secretary Fairholme was honored 
with the commission of a Captain for his valuable 
services in this direction. He also materially 
aided the American Red Star Animal Relief in 
having motor veterinary ambulances manufac- 
tured for it in England, which were presented to 
the American forces in France. 


, 


a - 





qi 





Henry BERGH 


Founder and President of the American Society for 
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, 1866 to 1888 


Cuaprer II 


HENRY BERGH: FOUNDER OF THE 
ANTICRUELTY CAUSE IN 
AMERICA 


T was more than a mere coincidence that the 

humane movement in England and America 

followed so closely upon the abolition of hu- 
man slavery. The Parliamentary Acts of 1807 
and 1811 stamped out slavery within the British 
Empire. These laws were the outgrowth of 
years of the most intense agitation in behalf of 
the principles of human liberty for all people, 
regardless of race or color. It was in 1809 that 
Erskine made his famous plea that animals were 
entitled to legal protection. How Martin’s Act, 
in 1822, became the first legislative recognition 
of this principle has been related in the previous 
chapter. 

Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation was is- 
sued in 1863, and was followed in 1865 by a con- 
stitutional amendment that abolished and forever 
prohibited slavery within the United States. But 
the curse of involuntary servitude was only 
wiped out through the blood and tears of a great 
Civil War. By it the rights of the defenseless 

33 


34 Humane Society Leaders in America 


were established. 'The conscience of a nation was 
stirred to its depths, and resulted in the develop- 
ment of an era of humanitarian progress hereto- 
fore unknown. Under such conditions it was 
most natural that the unfortunate lot of animals 
should attract attention. Ten years earlier such 
a movement could not have flourished. But in 
1866, the stage was set and it only needed the in- 
spiration of a stalwart leader to insure its success. 

Henry Bergh was such a character. He be- 
lieved himself divinely called to this work. None 
was more fitted by birth, education or tempera- 
ment to inaugurate and carry on a difficult and 
unpopular crusade. He was the son of Christian 
Bergh, a wealthy and highly respected ship- 
builder of New York City. In the Bergh yards 
were built some of the finest ships used in the 
War of 1812. Christian Bergh was a man of 
sterling worth and resolute will, qualities that 
were transmitted to his son Henry in no small 
degree. His ancestors came from Germany dur- 
ing the early part of the eighteenth century and 
settled along the lower Hudson. Christian mar- 
ried Elizabeth Ivers, the daughter of a substantial 
Connecticut family, who exerted a splendid in- 
fluence over her children. Henry Bergh was 
born in New York City, May 8th, 1823, and died 
there March 12th, 1888. He had one brother 
and a sister. 

On the death of the shipmaster, the large es- 


Henry Bergh 35 


tate was divided among the three children. 
Henry soon disposed of his interest in the ship- 
yard, preferring to devote his life to literature 
and play writing. His early education was 
thorough and completed by a course at Colum- 
bia University. He did not remain to graduate, 
leaving college for extensive travel in Europe. 
He returned to the United States in 1848 and 
soon after married Matilda Taylor, daughter of 
a wealthy Englishman, residing in New York. 
The next twelve years were spent in Europe and 
the Far East. During the latter portion of this 
period he resided in Germany, where he did con- 
siderable writing. His wide travels and famil- 
larity with life on the Continent caused Presi- 
dent Lincoln to appoint him Secretary of Lega- 
tion and Acting Consul at St. Petersburg, in 
1862. 

During Bergh’s trips over Europe he had been 
repeatedly shocked by the ill-treatment accorded 
animals, for which he had manifested a great lik- 
ing since early boyhood. While in St. Peters- 
burg, he discovered that with the aid of his liv- 
eried footman he could successfully intervene in 
many cases of cruelty which he witnessed because 
of the respect shown by the common people to 
official uniforms. One day after his servant had 
induced a man to cease beating his donkey, Bergh 
said: ‘‘ At last I’ve found a way to utilize my 


36 Humane Society Leaders in America 


gold lace and about the best use I can make of 
ite 

Owing to ill-health, Mr. Bergh was obliged to 
resign his post in 1864, but not before he had es- 
tablished most friendly relations at the royal 
court. As a special mark of favor the emperor’s 
private yacht was, on one occasion, placed at his 
disposal to visit the naval station of Kronstadt. 
Secretary Seward wrote that the Government ac- 
cepted Mr. Bergh’s resignation with great reluc- 
tance. 

The daily scenes of cruelty to animals on the 
streets of St. Petersburg so moved Mr. Bergh 
that he resolved to return to America and devote 
the remainder of his life to the cause of animal 
protection. On his way home he visited London 
and studied the work of the Royal Society for 
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, which at 
that time had forty years of glorious achievement 
to its credit. Mr. Bergh reached New York in 
the fall of 1864 and began immediately to shape 
the plans for his future work. He realized fully 
the difficulties that confronted him; the indiffer- 
ence of the people to suffering; the ridicule of un- 
friendly newspapers; the hatred of those 
whose pleasure or profits would be curtailed 
through his interference; the cost in money and 
physical strength; and, not least, the loss of per- 
sonal friendships among those who would not un- 
derstand that his motives were unselfish and 


Henry Bergh 37 


prompted only by a sincere desire to stop suffer- 
ing wherever he found it. 

At the outset his efforts met with little encour- 
agement. ‘The public was experiencing the reac- 
tions following four trying years of war. But 
Bergh would not give up, though he was greatly 
disheartened. He continued to interview prom- 
inent persons and enlist their support. Some of 
the leading newspapers were induced to feature 
his plans, which brought them to the attention of 
thousands throughout the city. His preliminary 
work must have been well done for, in spite of slush 
and rain, a good sized audience of representative 
citizens, including ex-Governor, then Mayor, 
John T. Hoffman, A. T. Stewart and other well- 
known men and women, braved the weather to 
hear him lecture on the cause of animal protec- 
tion, in Clinton Hall, on the evening of Febru- 
ary 8, 1866. His appeal was direct and con- 
vineing. “This is a matter purely of con- 
science,” he said. “It has no perplexing side 
issues. Politics have no more to do with it than 
astronomy, or the use of the globe. No, it isa 
moral question in all its aspects; it addresses 
itself to that quality of our nature that can not be 
disregarded by any people with safety to their 
dearest interests; it is a solemn recognition of 
that greatest attribute of the Almighty Ruler of 
the Universe, mercy, which if suspended in our 
own case but for a single instant, would over- 
whelm and destroy us.”’ 


38 Humane Society Leaders in America 


At the close of his lecture, several gentlemen 
assured him of their willingness to aid him finan- 
cially and morally. The press in New York and 
in nearly all of the large cities, featured his re- 
marks. Their novel character attracted a wide 
reading and led many to proffer their assistance. 
Mr. Bergh was more encouraged than he had 
been in many aday. He realized, however, that 
permanent results could only be secured through 
the medium of an incorporated society, invested 
with power to bring the cruelist to justice. He 
accordingly went to Albany with the necessary 
papers and asked the legislature for a state-wide 
charter for the American Society for the Preven- 
tion of Cruelty to Animals. This was granted on 
April 10, 1866, in spite of vigorous opposition by 
some of the legislators. It was the first document 
of its kind in the Western Hemisphere—the fore- 
runner and the pattern of many to be issued 
within a brief period. The document was drawn 
by James T. Brady and bore the signatures of 
ex-Governor Hoffman, J. J. Astor, Jr., John A. 
Dix, Peter Cooper, C. V. S. Roosevelt, George 
Bancroft and many other prominent New York- 
ers. 

The only law on the New York statute books 
dealing with animal protection was one that had 
been passed in 1829. It was inadequate and had 
long been a dead letter. Mr. Bergh submitted a 
bill to the legislature which was passed April 


Henry Bergh 39 


19, 1866, the anniversary of the Battle of Lex- 
ington. It was to be equally as significant in the 
cause of animal protection as was that famous 
skirmish of American patriots in their struggle 
for human liberty. Opposition developed to this 
“innovation,” but Bergh declared that had he 
thought the bill would pass so easily he would 
have asked for more. As it was the law now 
provided that ‘every person who shall, by his 
act or neglect, maliciously kill, maim, wound, 
injure, torture, or cruelly beat any horse, mule, 
cow, cattle, sheep, or other animal, belonging to 
himself or another, shall, upon conviction, be ad- 
judged guilty of a misdemeanor.” The law was 
avowedly tentative in character. Mr. Bergh an- 
ticipated, as events later proved to be the case, 
that as experience grew in the application of the 
_ act, it would be possible to work out more care- 
fully planned legislation. 

Three days after the passage of the law, April 
22, 1866, a meeting was called in Clinton Hall, at 
which the mayor presided. At that time the 
American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 
to Animals was formally organized. Its purpose 
as set forth in its constitution was: “To pro- 
vide effective means for the prevention of cruelty 
to animals throughout the United States, to en- 
force all laws which are now or may hereafter be 
enacted for the protection of animals and to 


40 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


secure, by lawful means, the arrest and convic- 
tion of all persons violating such laws.” 

Henry Bergh was unanimously elected as the 
society's first president, a position he continued 
to hold until his death in 1888. George Ban- 
croft, the celebrated historian, was made a vice- 
president, and many other well-known persons 
were placed on the Board of Directors. At the 
close of Mr. Bergh’s brief address of acceptance, 
he said: ‘‘ This, gentlemen, is the verdict that 
you have this day rendered, that the blood-red 
hand of cruelty shall no longer torture dumb ani- 
mals with impunity.” 

“That same evening,” writes a contempo- 
rary, “ Henry Bergh buttoned his overcoat and 
went forth to defend the law he had been mainly 
instrumental in securing, aware that on himself 
more than on any other man depended whether 
they were laughed at or obeyed.” He had not 
long to wait before he found a driver beating his 
horse. “ My friend, you can’t do that any more,” 
politely interceded Mr. Bergh. “ The d I 
can’t,” was the laconic reply, and the whip was 
laid on with renewed vigor. Mr. Bergh pro- 
tested, but was told to mind his own business. 

‘““T saw it was necessary to make an impres- 
sion in order to bring the law before the public,” 
said Mr. Bergh. Afterwards, in speaking of the 
affair, Mr. Bergh said that it was because of this 
conviction that he often adopted spectacular 





Henry Bergh 41 


methods in handling cases of cruelty. Few re- 
formers have more fully realized the value of 
newspaper publicity, even though at times it 
made him the butt of cheap wits and the target 
for cartoons. His long, angular face lent itself 
readily to pencil and pen sketches, a feature that 
cartoonists were not slow to grasp. He probably 
bore in mind the advice once given him by a 
Cheapside publisher in London, to whom he com- 
plained that the critics had been unfair in their 
reviews of his poem “ Married Off.” “If you 
are bound to appear in print,” consoled the pub- 
lisher, “ well and good if the newspapers speak 
in praises of you; but next to praise, being cut to 
pieces is the best thing to be hoped for. What 
we have to fear is that we will not be noticed at 
all. Silence is fatal.” 

Two attic rooms, at Broadway and Fourth 
Street, New York, were promptly rented by the 
society for office purposes. Mr. Bergh patrolled 
the streets, acted as agent, prosecutor and chief 
executive. Erequently he was obliged to pay its 
bills. But he persevered. He recognized the 
justice of his mission and nothing could induce 
him to turn back. Every item of expense was 
carefully considered and every cent received was 
placed where it would do the most good for the 
animals for which he labored. Once when Gov- 
ernor Hoffman visited the office he stumbled 
over a hole in the ragged carpet on the floor. 


42 Humane Society Leaders in America 


“Why, Mr. Bergh,” he remarked, “‘ do you not 
have a better carpet? Buy one and send the bill 
to me.” ‘‘ No, Governor,” replied Mr. Bergh, 
“that will never do; the animals need it; send 
the money to me and I will put it to better use 
on the streets.” 

Among the first abuses to receive the attention 
of the new society was the barbarous methods of 
transporting live calves in carts. These little 
creatures were tied by the legs and often piled 
on top of each other in such a way as to endanger 
their eyes and subject them to great physical suf- 
fering. Mr. Bergh resolved to break up the 
practice and caused the arrest of a Brooklyn 
butcher, who was convicted of the offense on 
April 25, 1866, and fined $10.00. <A similar 
case the following day resulted in conviction, a 
fine of $10.00 and further sentence of one day in 
the penitentiary. ‘These were the first recorded 
convictions for cruelty to animals in America. 
Another early campaign was directed against the 
plucking of live fowl. The press devoted much 
attention to the campaign, with very beneficial 
results. 

But the general public was still apathetic and 
Mr. Bergh longed for some case that would turn 
the spotlight on the society and give it space on 
the front page of the newspapers. ‘The discovery 
of a boatload of live turtles that had been shipped 
from Florida on their backs, with their flippers 


Henry Bergh 43 


pierced and tied together with strings, offered 
this opportunity. When the captain of the ves- 
sel refused to turn the turtles over, Mr. Bergh 
caused his arrest, together with the members of 
his crew. ‘They were taken to the Tombs, but 
' were later acquitted of cruelty by the court, al- 
though the famous Agassiz came to Mr. Bergh’s 
rescue with a brief stating “ that the Great Crea- 
tor, in endowing it (turtle) with life, gave to it 
feeling and certain rights, as well as to our- 
selves.” The judge, before whom the case was 
tried, told Bergh to go home and mind his own 
business. Some of the newspapers charged him 
with being overzealous and many abused him 
roundly. A lengthy satire in the New York 
Herald, a few days later, set all New York talk- 
ing. For a time James Gordon Bennett con- 
tinued to systematically ridicule Bergh and his 
society, but later the two men became personal 
friends and the Herald one of the staunchest sup- 
porters of the movement. The final outcome of 
the turtle case was to greatly increase the num- 
ber of supporters and friends of the new society. 

The society created quite a stir by exposing 
stock food dealers who were adulterating horse 
and cattle food with marble dust. Mr. Bergh 
also found time to appeal for better street pave- 
ments and to break up dog fights, which were then 
very popular with the scum of society and a cer- 
tain class of wealthy “ sports.” 


44 Humane Society Leaders in America 


The cruelty of overloading and using unfit 
animals on omnibuses and street railways was so 
glaring an evil that Mr. Bergh opened a fight 
against it during the first year of the society. He 
prosecuted it with great vigor for several years 
until drivers and owners came to understand that 
such practices would not be permitted. Nothing 
did more for the advancement of the society than 
this campaign. Mr. Bergh would station himself 
at the junction of two or more lines and examine 
the team and load of every car that passed. If 
the load was too heavy he would compel some of 
the passengers to alight, or if one or both of the 
horses were unfit for service he suspended them 
from work. On one occasion he held up an over- 
loaded street car during a severe snow storm. 
The ill-fed, overworked team was struggling to 
start the car with its mass of human freight which 
overflowed onto the platform and even struggled 
to retain a footing on the lower step, when Mr. 
Bergh loomed out of the storm. When the 
driver demanded by what authority he interfered, 
Bergh displayed his badge and ordered a number 
of the passengers to get off. The act was not 
a popular one with the passengers, who had paid 
their fare and were being inconvenienced, but 
their remonstrances were lost on Bergh, who 
stood at the horses’ heads and refused to permit 
the car to proceed. Finally a big, burly rough 
came forward and, hurling an unmentionable 


Henry Bergh 45 


epithet, shook his fist under Mr. Bergh’s nose. 
Without a moment’s hesitation he grabbed the 
fellow and with a mighty heave threw him into a 
snowbank. The crowd, which a second before 
had been hostile, gave a hearty cheer for the hero 
of the moment and without another protest got 
off the car and walked home.’ 

_ The victory against the overloading of horse 
cars was not won without a legal battle. When 
Mr. Bergh was informed that he would not be 
able to secure legislation regulating the carrying 
capacity of the cars he decided to make a test 
case in the courts under the existing law. Accord- 
ingly a driver and a conductor were arrested and 
tried before a jury. Both were convicted and 
fined $250.00. This verdict was appealed but 
sustained by the Supreme Court. This and simi- 
lar cases were contested bitterly by the street rail- 
way company through the most eminent coun- 
sel. The decision was a great victory for the 
society and Mr. Bergh. 

Before the end of the society’s first fiscal year, 
he had been to Albany and secured a law from 
the legislature limiting the time cattle could be 
left on the cars without food or water, in New 
York State, to twenty-eight hours. This was the 
first legislation to regulate the shipment of live 
stock. Ata later date he was able, with the help 


1Henry Bergh’s First Victory, Clara Morris, McClure’s Maga- 
zine, March, 1902. 


46 Humane Society Leaders in America 


of Elbridge T. Gerry, to reduce this time limit to 
twenty-four hours. He also started a movement 
for the erection of drinking fountains for animals 
that has since been energetically extended to 
many other cities. 

At the second annual meeting of the American 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Ani- 
mals, held in the spring of 1867, Mr. Bergh said: 
“Before the formation of the corporation, so 
little attention had been given by the people of 
this country to the prevention of cruelty to ani- 
mals, that many of the best informed persons, and 
those of the most benevolent characteristics gen- 
erally, appeared to be unconscious of the gross 
ignorance, thoughtlessness, indifference, and 
wanton cruelty to which the brute creation was 
daily subjected.”” While a year’s work had not 
entirely altered this condition, it had done much 
to correct it. Some of the original supporters 
had become disheartened by the ridicule and 
abuse heaped upon them, but others had felt 
prompted to fill in the gaps and the membership 
and financial support were constantly increasing. 
Frank Leslie had placed his influential publica- 
tion right back of Mr. Bergh and did yeoman ser- 
vice in winning moral support for the society. 
Sixty-six convictions were secured out of 119 
prosecutions during these first eventful twelve 
months, a record that many societies of a later 
day, under far more auspicious circumstances, 


Henry Bergh AT 


have not equalled. More than $7,400 was re- 
ceived for the support of the society, in the first 
year of its existence. 

The second year began with Mr. Bergh more 
convinced than ever that his task was a holy one 
and deserved his unremitting efforts. The im- 
portance of reaching the children with humane 
instruction was realized by him and led him to 
speak before many audiences of school children. 
He also reached the rural districts for the first 
time in the history of the humane movement by 
delivering an address at the Putnam County 
Fair. The speech was widely quoted in farm 
publications. 

One of the most sensational of the campaigns 
waged by Mr. Bergh was directed against the use 
of “swill milk.” After vainly attempting to in- 
terest the health department in the sanitary as- 
pects of the case, he disclosed the frightfully in- 
sanitary conditions under which much of the 
city’s milk supply was produced. Cattle in the 
last stages of disease, frequently so weak that 
they could only be kept on their feet with slings, 
were housed and milked in underground stables 
that reeked with filth and foul odors. They were 
fed on distillery slops and garbage. The start- 
ling revelations created a sensation which the 
papers featured prominently. Prosecutions in- 
stituted by Mr. Bergh against those guilty of 
such improper and disgusting practices met with 


48 Humane Society Leaders in America 


the most unexpected obstacles. Cases were ad- 
journed and postponed. Several defendants 
were acquitted. One justice refused to permit 
Mr. Bergh to appear in the case, in spite of the 
fact that he enjoyed a permanent appointment 
as “assistant district attorney.” Even the evi- 
dence of experts was denied by the politically cor- 
rupt court before which the cases were tried. 
Finally, Frank Leslie, James Gordon Bennett 
and other powerful editors joined him in the fight 
which ultimately resulted in the state authorities 
taking a hand and abating the evils. 

New York City was infested with scores of 
places in the lowest parts of the city where dog 
and cock fights, rat-baiting and other equally 
bloody and degrading sports were held with little 
or no interference from the police. Mr. Bergh 
opened a vigorous fight upon these cruelties, 
often exposing himself to great physical danger 
in the raids that he led against them. So greatly 
did they fear him that his house and the offices of 
the society were picketed in an attempt to frus- 
trate his raids. He and his agents were shadowed 
for months. The courts were not always willing 
to punish these offenders, and all manner of in- 
fluence was brought to divert Mr. Bergh from his 
purpose. After he had successfully raided and 
brought to justice the notorious Kit Burns, the 
acknowledged leader of the dog fighting fra- 
ternity, the pastime was pursued with greater 








Fleadquarters of the American Society tor Prevention 
of Cruelty to Animals, 50 Madison 
Avenue, New York 





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Henry Bergh 49 


caution than before. At the trial, Burns said to 
Mr. Bergh: “ Your society is doing a noble work, 
sir, yes, a magnificent work, but let me tell you, 
when it interferes in dog fighting, it digs its own 
grave.” 

Mr. Bergh was fast achieving a country wide 
reputation. He was deluged with inquiries which 
came to him from all parts of America for advice 
and suggestions regarding animal protection 
work. ‘These communications received his per- 
sonal attention and the replies that he wrote out 
with painstaking care were often the stimulus 
which led to the formation of local anticruelty 
societies. On invitation of societies that had al- 
ready been incorporated in Boston and Philadel- 
phia, he visited those places in 1869 and delivered 
inspirational addresses before large audiences. 
Requests for lectures were numerous, but he sel- 
dom felt that he could leave his work in New 
York for that purpose. In 1873, he finally ac- 
ceded to urgent invitations and planned a lec- 
ture tour that included Buffalo, Cleveland, 
Toledo, Chicago, St. Louis, Louisville and Cin- 
cinnati. Everywhere he was greeted by distin- 
guished audiences. In Buffalo, where a Branch 
of his own society was organized in 1868, Hon. 
Millard Fillmore presided at the meeting. In 
other instances the governor of the state, or the 
mayor of the city in which he spoke, honored him 
by acting as the chairman of his meeting. He 


4 


50 Humane Society Leaders in America 


had become a national figure. ‘The story of his 
crusade against cruelty had aroused a vast num- 
ber of people to action. Those who crowded the 
lecture halls to hear him, listened with rapt atten- 
tion to his message, which was marked with 
pathos and humor. There was something in the 
tone of his voice, the flash of the deep-set eyes, the 
sway of the tall, gaunt form, that fired the enthu- 
siasm of those who heard him to go forth and 
emulate his good works. 

Many notable improvements in the handling 
of sick and disabled animals were being worked 
out under his personal supervision. In 1869, he 
devised the horse ambulance which greatly facili- 
tated the moving of sick or injured animals un- 
able to walk. So well did he work out the design 
that with the exception of substituting motor for 
horse power, little change has been made in the 
construction of horse ambulances since that time. 
It is an interesting fact that ambulance service 
for animals was introduced before it was adopted 
by hospitals for humans. Mr. Bergh also adapted 
the derrick for lifting horses out of excavations. 
He early took a decided stand against vivisection 
and never lost an opportunity to oppose it. 

Live pigeon shoots were very popular with gun 
clubs during the early seventies. ‘They were at- 
tended with so much suffering to wounded birds 
that Mr. Bergh attacked the sport in his usual 
vigorous way, thereby bringing down upon him 


Henry Bergh 51 


the enmity of sporting clubs. His relentless fight 
caused the invention of the clay pigeon, to which 
he gave the greatest encouragement. Im a test 
case it was held that the shooting of live pigeons. 
thrown from traps came under the general cru- 
elty act. This aroused the ire of the pigeon 
shooters and the manufacturers of sporting 
goods, who succeeded in inducing the legislature 
to pass a law legalizing the sport. Every move 
was bitterly opposed by Mr. Bergh, Mr. Gerry 
and other humanitarians, but without avail. 
Numerous attempts were made to repeal the law, 
including one by Theodore Roosevelt, but the 
law remained on the statute books until 1901. 

By 1870, the work had grown to such propor- 
tions that Mr. Bergh could not look after the 
corps of agents on the streets, attend to the in- 
creasing office work and give the legal details the 
attention which they deserved. Previously he 
had personally prosecuted nearly all of the 
society’s cases. ‘Those who opposed him before 
the bar recognized him as no mean lawyer. He 
cross-examined with ingenious skill and often 
succeeded in placing the defense in an awkward 
position. When the courts failed to render what 
he regarded to be plain justice to his animal cli- 
ents he did not hesitate to assail their decisions. 
At one time the situation became so bad that it 
was with difficulty that he got his cases before 
the courts, but his intrepid courage drove him on 


52 Humane Society Leaders in America 


until at last he won the recognition which he 
knew to be his due. 

Fortunately he was able to enlist the volunteer 
services of Elbridge T. Gerry, a brilliant young 
attorney, who was to win undying fame later in 
his work for child protection. Mr. Gerry, with 
his well trained legal mind, threw his whole en- 
ergy into helping Mr. Bergh prosecute his work. 
His skill on one occasion saved Mr. Bergh from 
conviction on the ground of making a “ false ar- 
rest,’ and on another he caused a presentment by 
the Grand Jury to be quashed. In the latter in- 
stance Mr. Bergh had criticised the jury for its 
failure to hear witnesses he had produced against 
some cock fighters. After Mr. Gerry’s connec- 
tion with the society, he prepared all legislation 
offered by it in Congress or the state legislature, 
and made many arguments before legislative 
committees in its behalf. His aid was invaluable 
in Bergh’s legislative fight to prevent the street 
car company from using salt to thaw out its 
switches, the salt causing injuries to the horses’ 
feet. The persistency with which the society 
caused its bill to be reintroduced, year after year, 
ultimately resulted in the desired legislation. 

The unyielding tactics of Mr. Bergh in his 
legislative campaigns are well illustrated by the 
following, quoted from the society’s report for 
1873: “‘ Why,’ remarked a senator, while our 
bill was under consideration in that branch of the 


H enry Bergh 53 


legislature, ‘ why these humanitarians will by and 
by tell us that we should be tender in the treat- 
ment of the rat, the reptile, and the bug.’ ‘ Yes, 
Mr. Senator, you are right; only your prediction 
is not comprehensive enough, for the by and by 
is now present, ever has been, and ever will be, 
because it is an attribute of the Deity and of His 
World. Kill, if necessary, but torture not, is the 
command of intelligent reason.’ ” 

From the earliest days of Mr. Bergh’s ac- 
tivities he had realized the need of legislation to 
regulate the transportation of animals on the 
railroads. Frequently food animals were kept 
on stock trains for eighty hours or more without 
food or water. Shipments of live stock were left 
for hours on side tracks that perishable fruit and 
dead freight might be rushed to their destination. 
During 1867, as we have stated, he induced the 
New York legislature to place a twenty-eight 
hour time limit on shipments of live stock within 
the state. Ata later date the time limit was re- 
duced to twenty-four hours. If the shipment 
were consigned to some point outside the state, 
there was no law to prevent the animals from 
being kept on board till they starved to death, a 
condition that actually occurred at times through 
the indifference of railroad employees. Mr. 
Gerry caused a bill to be introduced in Congress 
to regulate such shipments. After a hard fight, 
participated in by many humanitarians, the so- 


54 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


called twenty-eight hour law was passed. ‘This 
was ultimately amended to allow live stock to be 
confined in cars for thirty-six hours, without feed 
or water, under certain special conditions which, © 
however, are deemed unsatisfactory. 

Fiarly in the life of the society Mr. Bergh 
found himself hampered by lack of sufficient 
funds with which to prosecute his work. During 
the first year Mr. and Mrs. Bergh turned over to 
the society a property that would yield about 
$7,000 annually. Some legacies were promised. 
Money came from persons of whom Mr. Bergh 
had never heard, but who had been impressed with 
the importance of his work through the accounts 
in the press. One of the most notable of these 
legacies was that of a benevolent Frenchman, by 
the name of Louis Bonard, who sent for Mr. 
Bergh just before he died at St. Vincent’s hospi- 
tal. “I have,” said the sick man, “long enter- 
tained a deep regard for the Society for the Pre- 
vention of Cruelty to Animals, and I have be- 
queathed it all my property, as there is no 
other cause which so entirely possesses my sym- 
pathies as the one it represents.” His estate 
amounted to more than $150,000, but the will 
was so vigorously contested by relatives that the 
society realized only about $100,000. The prop- 
erty was not finally conveyed to the. society until 
1873 and was then used to purchase permanent 
headquarters at Fourth Avenue and 22nd Street. 


Henry Bergh 55 


The Animal Kingdom, the second humane 
publication in America, was founded by Mr. 
Bergh in 1873, and continued to be published 
until 1907. It served as a splendid vehicle for 
keeping the members and friends of the society 
informed of its progress in the field of animal 
protection. | 

One of the most notable achievements of 
Henry Bergh was the founding of the Society 
for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children in 
1874, in conjunction with Mr. Elbridge T. 
Gerry. It was the first organized attempt in the 
world to rescue neglected and abused children 
and marked the beginning of a movement that 
was to revolutionize the lot of unfortunate child-- 
hood. Its development is described in another 
chapter of this book. 

During the last few years of Mr. Bergh’s life 
he suffered from indigestion, but did not cease to 
exert himself in behalf of the society for which 
he had sacrificed so much, up to the time of his 
death on March 12th, 1888. During the twenty- 
three years the society had been in existence, he 
had been in supreme command of its affairs, 
though he had depended to no small extent upon 
the counsel of his friend, Elbridge T. Gerry. 
When he died, The New York Herald said: 
‘His society was distinctly a one man power. 
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to 
Animals was Henry Bergh and Henry Bergh 


56 Humane Society Leaders in America 


was the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to 
Animals.” He once said: “I hate to think 
what will become of this society when I am gone.” 
Fortunately, there were those who were willing 
to carry on the work. At the time of this writing 
the American Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Animals continues to be one of the 
largest organizations of its kind in the world, 
both in the extent of work performed and in 
financial resources. What a monument it is to 
him whose creative genius founded and developed 
the work in spite of great obstacles and opposi- 
tion. 

Many of the papers that had in the early days 
held Mr. Bergh up to ridicule, devoted extensive 
space to his obituary, praising his life work and 
according him the recognition that he so right- 
fully deserved. The friends of animals every- 
where mourned his passing. For so many years 
he had stood as the most prominent figure in hu- 
manitarian enterprise, that to some it seemed as 
though the keystone of the arch had been re- 
moved. His staunch friend and co-laborer, E]- 
bridge T. Gerry, was moved to write in the reso- 
lutions on his death prepared for the American 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Ani- 
mals: “ And now that he has passed away in the 
fulness of years, his memory unimpaired, his in- 
tellect clear to the last, and his name untarnished 
and lustrous through the course of a long and 


y ie 
oa oe 
+ 








Mr. WILLIAM K. Horton 


General Manager, the American Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals since 1906 


Henry Bergh 57 


busy life consecrated to the noblest work of char- 
ity—the care of the helpless—where shall his 
equal be found who will leave so great a name? 
When will his like appear again?” 

A sketch of Henry Bergh would be incom- 
plete that failed to give a picture of his unique 
personality. If his education and extensive 
travel gave him an urbanity that commanded the 
attention of the most illustrious people of his 
day; if his wealth enabled him to devote himself 
unreservedly to his task for twenty-three years 
without remuneration of any kind, other than the 
satisfaction of doing good; his physical appear- 
ance, his ability to withstand unjust criticism and 
scurrilous attacks of bitter enemies, were equally 
responsible for his success. We will let those 
who saw him as he went about the streets of New 
York, alert for acts of cruelty, describe him: 

“I was alarmed by the dignity of his presence 
and disarmed by his politeness. Since Horace 
Greeley’s death, no figure more familiar to the 
public has walked the streets of the metropolis. 
Nature gave him an absolute patent on every 
feature and manner of his personality. His com- 
manding stature of six feet is magnified by his 
erect and dignified bearing. A silk hat with 
straight rim covers with primness the severity of 
his presence. A dark brown or dark blue frock 
overcoat encases his broad shoulders and spare, 
yet sinewy, figure. A decisive hand grasps a 


58 Humane Society Leaders in America 


cane, strong enough to lean upon, and competent 
to be of defense without looking like a standing 
menace. When this cane, or even his finger, is 
raised in warning, the cruel driver is quick to un- 
derstand and heed the gesture. On the crowded 
street, he walks with a slow, slightly swinging 
pace peculiar to himself. Apparently preoccu- 
pied, he is yet observant of everything about him 
and mechanically notes the condition of every 
passing horse. Everybody looks into the long, 
solemn, finely chiseled face wearing an expres- 
sion of firmness and benevolence. Brown locks 
fringe a broad and rounded forehead. Kyes be- 
tween blue and hazel, lighted by intellectual fires, 
are equally ready to dart authority or show com- 
passion. There is energy of character in a long 
nose of the purest Greek type; melancholy in a 
-mouth rendered doubly grave by deep lines, thin 
lips and a sparse, drooping mustache, and deter- 
mination in a square chin of leonine strength. 
The head, evenly poised, is set on a stout neck 
rooted to broad shoulders. In plainness, grav- 
ity, good taste, individuality and unassuming and 
self-possessed dignity, his personality is a com- 
promise between a Quaker and a French noble- 
man whose life and thoughts no less than long 
descent are his title to nobility.” 

Drivers knew him and touched their caps to 
him, a courtesy he always acknowledged with a 
friendly smile and a nod of his head. Often 


Henry Bergh 59 


strangers would grasp his hand and assure him of 
their cooperation and friendship. He was a 
ready speaker and never at a loss for a reply. 
On one occasion when Police Justice “Joe” 
Dowling (as he was commonly known) rendered 
a decision according to his own view of what the 
law ought to be, with the remark, ‘“‘ That is Joe 
Dowling’s law,” Mr. Bergh retorted. “‘ Some 
day there will be a Bergh law which you will obey 
or we shall try to compel you to do so.” 

Frequently he would take advantage of a 
crowd that gathered around when he stopped a 
driver for some offense to deliver a little lesson 
on Americanism and kindness. It became known 
as his curbstone address: “ Now, gentlemen, 
consider that you are American citizens, living in 
a republic. You make your own laws: no despot 
makes them for you. And I appeal to your sense 
of justice and your patriotism, ought not you to 
respect what you yourselves have made? ”’ 

Mr. Bergh’s physical strength is a matter often 
referred to among the anecdotes preserved of his 
work. When moral suasion failed to secure de- 
sired results, he did not hesitate to use brute 
force. One day he found a cart loaded with 
calves and sheep. ‘The legs of the poor crea- 
tures were bound and their heads hung over the 
sides of the vehicle. When the driver and helper 
refused to relieve them of their suffering, Mr. 


60 Humane Society Leaders in America 


Bergh pulled the two men off the cart and hold- 
ing them at arm’s length brought their heads to- 
gether with a thud. “ How do you like that ex- 
ercise?”’ he inquired. ‘ Perhaps now you can 
feel how the heads of those poor sheep and calves 
feel.” 

Among all classes of people Bergh com- 
manded attention and respect but he never had 
or sought many close personal friends. His posi- 
tion in society and his reserve kept his inferiors 
from taking liberties with him. One acquain- 
tance for whom he showed marked regard was a 
young prize fighter who studied law and later 
became a successful criminal lawyer. Bergh en- 
joyed his society and on one occasion took dinner 
at his West Side home. Mr. Bergh declared 
afterwards, “He is one of nature’s noblemen, 
eares for his mother and loves all animals.”’ 

It was commonly thought that he was callous 
to ridicule but few were more sensitive to the 
criticism of friends and enemies. His wife, who 
was his loyal supporter and gave him moral en- 
couragement when things looked black, said that 
he often cried over the vexatious difficulties that 
were heaped in his way. In spite of this sensi- 
tiveness, he did not let it interfere with his cru- 
sade. He once said: “Two or three years of 
ridicule and abuse have thickened the epidermis 
of my sensibilities, and I have acquired the habit 


Henry Bergh 61 


of doing the thing I think right, regardless of 
public clamor.” 

If animal protection was Mr. Bergh’s hobby, 
the theatre was his delight. He was an inveterate 
“first nighter”’ and possessed a wonderful 
knowledge of the spoken drama. It was his am- 
bition as a young man to become a playwright. 
He produced several comedies that were tried out 
unsuccessfully in England. Only one of his 
plays, “ Hard Sex,” was produced in America, 
and that privately. He also wrote several poems. 
Henry Bergh’s literary efforts have long been 
forgotten, but his name will always be associated 
with the inauguration of a great reform. Every 
state in the Union has testified to the soundness 
of his work by passing legislation for animal pro- 
tection modeled after the laws which he caused 
to be enacted in New York State. He saw the 
child of his thoughts grow from an idea to a 
mighty and successful institution. He witnessed 
more than 12,000 cases of cruelty prosecuted by 
his society. He beheld scores of societies for the 
protection of animals started all over the Union. 
He inaugurated a movement that has rescued 
several million children from neglect and crime. 
His work vitalized the Golden Rule and gave it 
added sway in the hearts of his countrymen. 
Surely such achievements entitle Henry Bergh 
to place among the noblest of America’s immor- 


62 Humane Society Leaders in America 


tals. The poet Longfellow paid a justly de- 
served tribute to Mr. Bergh when he wrote: 
‘* Among the noblest of the land, 

Though he may count himself the least, 

That man I honor and revere, 

Who, without favor, without fear, 

In the great city dares to stand 

The friend of every friendless beast.” 


Soon after the death of Henry Bergh the 
American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 
to Animals elected his nephew and namesake, 
Henry Bergh, as his successor. This gentleman 
had long been associated and in the fullest sym- 
pathy with the work of his distinguished uncle. 
He still continues to be closely identified with 
the society. In 1890, John P. Haines was elected 
President and remained in office for sixteen years. 
During this time the society took over the dog 
license and municipal pound work which pre- 
viously had been in charge of the city. The 
change proved very satisfactory. The society 
further modernized its work by installing motor 
ambulances for large and small animals, which 
was something new in the humane world and 
marked a great step in advance. ‘This period 
was further marked by the erection of an attrac- 
tive and convenient headquarters building in the 
heart of New York, at the corner of Madison 
Avenue and Twenty-sixth Street, opposite Madi- 
son Square Garden. 


Henry Bergh 63 


In 1907, Col. Alfred Wagstaff was elected 
President. He had been previously a co-worker 
with the elder Bergh and was deeply interested 
in the operations of the society. His administra- 
tion proved a very successful one and he served 
until his death in October, 1921. His successor 
was Mr. Frank K. Sturgis, a gentleman of signal 
ability, who was elected soon after Col. Wag- 
staff's decease. His selection proved a happy 
choice and he has served the society to the satis- 
faction of its many friends. He still occupies 
the position of President. 

Much of the successful administration of the 
American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 
to Animals, during the past quarter of a cen- 
tury, and more, has been due to the devoted ser- 
vices of William K. Horton as General Man- 
ager. He has been in the employ of the society 
since 1895, and brought to his office services of 
the highest order. To him, in cooperation with 
President Wagstaff, largely belongs the credit 
for the erection of the first modern Animal Hos- 
pital, to increase the usefulness of an anticruelty 
society. This building, which is a model of effi- 
ciency, cleanliness and equipment, is the result 
of many years of careful planning and a very 
liberal expenditure of money. ‘The society 
waited until it could appropriate some 
$200,000 for an institution which would meet 
modern requirements. Mr. Horton has helped 


64 Humane Society Leaders in America 


to modernize the ambulance department, to equip 
watering stations for horses and to develop an 
effective system of humane education in the pub- 
lic schools of New York. He has done much to 
encourage more humane slaughtering of food 
animals and has been a wise and enlightened ad- 
ministrator for a great and progressive anti- 
cruelty society, the success of which has been very 
largely dependent on his devotion for many 
years. 

During all these years Henry Bergh’s society 
has gone steadily forward in its work for human- 
ity. It operates more than a score of automo- 
biles and has more than one hundred persons on 
its payroll. ‘The society has steadily gained in 
public esteem and support. It is safe to say that 
it has deserved it. 








Hon. ELBRIDGE T. GERRY 


President, New York Society tor the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Children, 1876 to 1901 


Cuapter III 


ELBRIDGE T. GERRY AND THE PRE- 
VENTION OF CRUELTY TO 
CHILDREN 


HILD saving work in America was so 
long and so closely associated with the 
name of Elbridge T. Gerry that the New 
York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to 
Children became generally known as “ the Gerry 
Society.” This was a public tribute to his un- 
tiring energy, faithful devotion and legal sagac- 
ity, so freely given to protect the interests of the 
society and its pitiful clients. For years Mr. 
Gerry was generally acknowledged as the fore- 
most champion of oppressed childhood in the 
United States. 

The New York Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Children was the first of its kind in 
the world. Its efficiency was largely due to Mr. 
Gerry, who formulated the laws under which it 
operated and steadfastly fought the battles of 
the society in and out of court. A legal career 
of unusual promise was sacrificed that he might 
personally assume, without thought of remunera- 
tion, the direction of this important work. Per- 

65 

5 


66 Humane Society Leaders in America 


sonal attacks were sometimes launched against 
him by those whose training and position in 
society should have made them co-workers, be- 
cause they failed to appreciate the scope of what 
he had set out to do. Newspapers, with half- 
truths at their disposal, published misleading 
articles about him and the society which he 
represented. The theatre and dance hall man- 
agers, the saloon keepers, the tong leaders of 
Chinatown, and the citizens of the underworld, 
were as one in fighting with every conceivable 
weapon the attempts which he made to rescue 
children from sordid conditions. But Mr. Gerry 
saw further than they did. He realized that the 
child was the heart of the nation “and in the 
chain of national circumstances a neglected, ill- 
treated, underfed, inefficient, or defective child 
may easily be the weakest link.” Fortunately, 
many who at first disparaged his work, learned to 
appreciate and heartily support it. 

Elbridge T. Gerry came of sterling American 
stock. His grandfather, Elbridge Gerry, a 
Colonial patriot and statesman, was a member of 
the Continental Congress, a signer of the Decla- 
ration of Independence, Governor of Massachu- 
setts, and Vice-President of the United States 
under President Madison. He was a man of 
fearless independence who stood by his own con- 
victions and did not hesitate to assert himself for 
what he thought to be right at whatever the cost 


Elbridge T. Gerry 67 


in personal popularity. Thomas R. Gerry was 
the son of this staunch American and the father 
of Elbridge 'T., who was born on Christmas day, 
1837. ‘The mother of the latter was Hannah G., 
the youngest daughter of Peter P. Goelet. 

The Gerrys were possessed of considerable 
fortune and gave young Elbridge every educa- 
tional advantage. At the age of twenty he had 
graduated from Columbia University and a year 
later received his master’s degree from the insti- 
tution. He was a most thorough student and so 
proficient in Latin that he made a comprehen- 
sive study of Roman law. On graduation, he 
began the study of law, and on being admitted 
to the bar, quickly won distinction in his profes- 
sion. His practice was extensive and he was ex- 
traordinarily successful in the many prominent 
civil and criminal actions in which he appeared. 
He gathered in his beautiful Fifth Avenue home 
a law library of over 30,000 volumes, which con- 
stitutes one of the finest private collections of 
law books in America. 

His marked success in his professional work 
attracted no little attention. At the age of thirty 
he was a member of the New York State Con- 
stitutional Convention, in which he served on the 
pardon committee. In 1886, he was appointed 
chairman of the New York State Committee on 
Capital Punishment, which decided upon electro- 
cution as the most humane method of executing 


68 Humane Society Leaders in America 


persons guilty of capital crimes. The legislature 
accepted the report of the committee and sub- 
stituted electrocution in place of hanging. Dur- 
ing the celebration of the centennial of the in- 
auguration of George Washington, he served as 
the chairman of the Executive Committee. In 
1892, he was Chairman of a Commission to con- 
sider the best method of dealing with the insane 
of New York State. The report submitted was 
very complete and became a valuable addition to 
the literature on this subject. 

Many of those who have long admired Mr. 
Gerry’s contribution to the cause of child protec- 
tion are not aware of the fact that he was one of 
Henry Bergh’s staunchest supporters and most 
loyal friends during the latter’s pioneer work for 
animal protection. Mr. Bergh was delighted to 
secure the services of so talented an attorney as 
counsel for the American Society for the Preven- 
tion of Cruelty to Animals, thus relieving him of 
its ever growing legal work. The announcement 
of the acquisition of this valuable recruit was 
made by him in the fifth annual report of the 
society, published in 1871. 

From 1870, until Mr. Bergh’s death in 1888, 
Mr. Gerry prepared all the bills that were intro- 
duced at the request of the society at Albany or 
Washington. He appeared many times before 
legislative committees and by virtue of the legal 
knowledge and the strength of his arguments 


ko 


{ 
‘ 
ie 


== 
> + 








SENATOR PETER G. GERRY 


First Vice-President of The American Humane 
Association 


Elbridge T. Gerry 69 


won important legislation, which, during the sub- 
sequent years, has been of the greatest value in 
suppressing cruelty. At the time Mr. Bergh 
was restrained by injunction from making ar- 
rests of butchers for their cruel methods in 
slaughtering hogs, his counsel prepared a brief 
citing the legal status of animals from the 
earliest recorded history down to the present day. 
It was the most exhaustive treatment of the sub- 
ject ever prepared and was so masterfully drawn 
that the injunction was dissolved... On many 
other occasions the society had reason for self- 
congratulation that this clear-sighted, aggressive 
young attorney was directing its legal depart- 
ment. At this time, more‘than at any later date, 
precedents were being established on which the 
effective interpretation of anticruelty laws now 
hinges. 

Mr. Bergh was fully cognizant of the part 
Mr. Gerry was taking in strengthening the legal 
position of animal protection, and paid him the 
following compliment in the report of the Amer- 
ican Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to 
Animals, for 1873: “To his eminent profes- 
sional abilities, and devotion to this God-approv- 
ing work of defending the defenseless, the society 
and its eause owe a debt inappreciable in dollars. 
I think that if I had been skeptical of the eternal 


+The Hog Slaughterer’s Injunction, Davis vs. American Society 
for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. 


70 Humane Society Leaders in America 


presence of an overruling Providence in the af- 
fairs of this world, my repeated experience in 
the progress of this work would alone suffice to 
extinguish all doubt. How often, during its in- 
ception and development, have the dark clouds 
which lowered over my path suddenly and most 
unexpectedly opened and the aid and support so 
coveted, the lack of which rendered me for the 
time so despondent, have come. I regard this 
excellent gentleman as a signal manifestation of 
the Divine Sovereignty to which I allude. Not 
only has his prudent and sagacious counsel pre- 
vented or parried harm, but by his eloquent and 
astute advocacy of the rights of the society be- 
fore the judicial tribunal of the state, he has in 
some instances affirmed its powers, and preserved 
to its treasury that material element of its suc- 
cess.” 

At this time the society presented Mr. Gerry 
with a loving cup suitably inscribed. In 1875, 
Mr. Bergh caused a gold badge to be prepared 
and presented to Mr. Gerry, who wore it quite 
constantly for many years. In acknowledging 
the gift he wrote: “I trust you will convey to 
them (directors) my sincere appreciation of the 
gift and that you will assure them how I appre- 
ciate most a decoration and a badge, which, like 
the cross of the Great Emperor, no money could 
buy and the privilege of wearing which was itself 
the patent of nobility.” 


Elbridge T. Gerry 71 


Mr. Gerry continued actively as counsel of 
the American Society for the Prevention of Cru- 
elty to Animals until the death of Mr. Bergh in 
1888, and remained as one of its vice-presidents 
until 1899. On his retirement from active par- 
ticipation in its legal work, the directors wrote 
of him in their records: “‘ Without reward of 
any kind, he was ever ready to lend his brilliant 
attainments in behalf of the suffering and help- 
less, no matter to what life they belonged.”’ 

Important, however, as Mr. Gerry’s services 
were in the interest of animal protection, his 
fame in the field of humanitarian endeavor rests 
chiefly on his achievements in child rescue work. 
His part in the formation of the first society for 
the prevention of cruelty to children, in 1874, was 
a big one, but at that time he scarcely perceived 
that he was laying the foundation of a life work. 
This revelation was to be borne in upon him dur- 
ing the next few years as he studied the possi- 
bilities of such an organization and sensed its 
need for strong leadership. One with so keen an 
intuition and deep-seated humanitarian impulses 
could not long continue to take merely a passive 
or secondary interest in its development. 

It was in 1873 that Mrs. Etta Angell 
Wheeler, a social worker in the New York slums, 
first learned of the sad plight of the child whose 
rescue was to bring about the formation of the 
first society for child protection in the world. For 


72 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


several months she sought means to remove her 
from the clutches of brutal foster parents who 
beat her with a whip of twisted leather thongs 
until her diminutive body was a mass of cuts and 
bruises. The police, the charities, even the courts 
offered no method of relief. She “ had more than 
once been tempted,” Mrs. Wheeler wrote, in 
after years, “‘ to apply to the Society for the Pre- 
vention of Cruelty to Animals, but had lacked 
the courage to do what seemed absurd. How- 
ever, when, on the following Tuesday, a niece 
said: “You are so troubled over that abused 
child, why not go to Mr. Bergh? She is a little 
animal surely.’ I said at once, ‘I will go.’ 
Within an hour I was at the society’s rooms. 
Mr. Bergh was in his office and listened to my 
recital most courteously but with a slight air of 
amusement that such an appeal should be made 
there. In the end he said: ‘ The case interests 
me much, but very definite testimony is needed 
to warrant interference between a child and those 
‘claiming guardianship. Will you not send me a 
statement that, at my leisure, I may judge the 
weight of the evidence and may also have time to 
consider if this society should interfere? I 
promise to consider the case carefully.’ ” ° 

The statement was prepared promptly, and 
on April 9, 1874, forty-eight hours after the in- 
terview, the child was brought before Judge Law- 


*The Story of Mary Ellen, The American Humane Association. 


Elbridge T. Gerry 73 


rence, of the Supreme Court. Jacob Riis, who 
was a spectator, that day in court, described the 
scene later in a magazine article, which is worthy 
of preservation: 

‘ I was in a court room full of men with pale, 
stern looks. I saw a child brought in, carried in 
a horse blanket, at the sight of which men wept 
aloud. I saw it laid at the feet of the judge, who 
turned his face away, and in the stillness of that 
court room I heard a voice raised claiming for 
that child the protection men had denied it, in the 
name of the homeless cur on the streets. And I 
heard the story of little Mary Ellen told again, 
that stirred the soul of a city and roused the con- 
science of a world that had forgotten. The sweet- 
faced missionary who found Mary Ellen was 
there, wife of a newspaper man—happy augury; 
where the gospel of faith and the gospel of facts 
join hands the world moves. She told how the 
poor consumptive, in the dark tenement, at 
whose bedside she daily read the Bible, could not 
die in peace while ‘ The child they called Mary 
Ellen’ was beaten and tortured in the next flat; 
and how on weary feet she went from door to 
door of the powerful, vainly begging mercy for 
it and peace for her dying friend. ‘The police 
told her to furnish evidence, to prove crime, or 
they could not move; the Societies said, ‘ Bring 
the child to us legally and we will see; till then 
we can do nothing;’ the charitable said, ‘It is 


74 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


dangerous to interfere between parent and child; 
better let it alone;’ and the judges said it was 
even so; it was for them to see that men walked 
in the way laid down, not to find it—until her 
woman’s heart rebelled against it all, and she 
sought the great friend of dumb brutes, who 
made a way. 

“<The child is an animal,’ he said. ‘If 
there is no justice for it as a human being, it 
shall at least have the rights of the cur in the 
street. It shall not be abused.’ 

‘And as I looked I knew I was where the 
first chapter of the children’s rights was written 
under warrant of that made for the dog; for 
from that dingy court room, whence a wicked 
woman went to jail, thirty years ago, came forth 
The New York Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Children, with all it has meant to the 
world’s life. It is quickening its pulse in this day 
in lands and among peoples who never spoke the 
name of my city and Mary Ellen’s.”’ ° 

On leaving the court room Mrs. Wheeler 
paused to thank Mr. Bergh for his assistance and 
ask “ If there could not be a society for the pre- 
vention of cruelty to children which should do 
for abused children what was being so well done 
for animals? He took my hand and said very 


* Address, “‘ Sister Societies Abroad,” by E. Fellows Jenkins, 
delivered at 30th Annual Meeting of The American Humane Asso- 
ciation. 


Elbridge T'. Gerry 75 


emphatically: ‘ There shall be one.’”’ The exist- 
ence to-day of several hundred such organiza- 
tions testifies how well this promise was kept. 

New York was greatly stirred by the details 
of this case, which were fully reported in the 
papers. Several similar cases were brought to 
the society for solution. Action of some sort was 
necessary. With characteristic vigor Mr. Bergh 
began to sound out public opinion regarding the 
formation of such a society. The original peti- 
tion, or “ Inspiration,” drawn by him is now one 
of the prized documents of the New York Society 
for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. It 
bears the signatures of Henry Bergh, Elbridge 
T. Gerry, John D. Wright and other prominent 
persons. The society was instituted December 
15, 1874. Mr. Gerry was requested to draw up 
the incorporation papers and arrange for its char- 
ter under the name of the New York Society for 
the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, which was 
finally obtained in 1875. 

In the ninth report of the American Society 
for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, pub- 
lished the same year, Mr. Bergh wrote: “It is 
with infinite satisfaction that I report the for- 
mation of a Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 
to Children. And it will afford you, likewise, I 
am certain, an equal share of pleasure to know 
that to this society is due, in a great degree, the 
consummation of this important fact. ‘That the 


76 Humane Society Leaders in America 


sad case of ‘ little Mary Ellen,’ which Mr. Gerry 
and others so wisely conducted to a happy result 
was the nucleus of its creation there is little 
doubt; and that the suffering of that little frac- 
tion of humanity inspired the kind-hearted Mr. 
John D. Wright to take the leading part in its 
formation and usefulness is also true. Nor, while 
alluding to the incidents, should I fail to make 
mention that to Mrs. Charles C. Wheeler are due 
the honor and credit of first calling my attention 
to the deplorable condition of that child. Mr. 
Gerry has prepared an act of incorporation, 
which includes many of our most eminent and 
humane citizens, and it has already been pre- 
sented to the legislature.” 

The society quickly became a power in New 
York City, where it has afforded more than a 
million children the benefit of its legal protec- 
tion. Other cities adopted the idea. Its possi- 
bilities so appealed to Frederick A. Agnew, of 
Kngland, who was visiting in America, that on 
his return, he organized a society, in Liverpool, in 
1882. ‘The National Society for the Prevention 
of Cruelty to Children, with offices in London, 
which has representatives stationed in all the im- 
portant centers of Great Britain, was a direct 
outgrowth, in 1884. For more than twenty years 
Rev. Benjamin Waugh was the guiding and 
directing spirit of this organization. The move- 
ment has also taken deep root on the Continent 


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Elbridge T. Gerry 77 


of Kurope and in other parts of the world. Since 
the parent society was founded in 1875, more 
than 500 other similar organizations have been 
created. 

Before the organization of the New York 
society, the abused child had practically no pro- 
tector, as the case of “Mary Ellen” clearly 
showed. Under the theory of the law the state 
had the obligation placed upon it to protect the 
child “in person and property and in its oppor- 
tunity for life, liberty and the pursuit of happi- 
ness,” but with no special organization or depart- 
ment of government to see that these rights were 
enforced the lot of thousands of children beg- 
gared description. A vivid picture of these con- 
ditions is drawn by President Gerry in the tenth 
report of the New York society: 

‘ Impecunious parents drove them from their 
miserable homes at all hours of the day and night 
to beg and steal. They were trained as acrobats 
at the risk of life and limb, and beaten cruelly if 
they failed. They were sent at night to procure 
liquor for parents too drunk to venture them- 
selves into the streets. They were drilled in 
juvenile operas and song and dance variety busi- 
ness until their voices were cracked, their growth 
stunted, and their health permanently ruined by 
exposure and want of rest. Numbers of young 
Italians were imported by padrom under prom- 
ises of a speedy return, and then sent out on the 


78 Humane Society Leaders in America 


streets to play on musical instruments, to peddle 
flowers and small wares to the passers-by and too 
often as a cover for immorality. Their surround- 
ings were those of vice, profanity, and obscenity. 
Their only amusements were the dance halls, the 
cheap theatres, and museums and saloons. Their 
acquaintances were those hardened in sin, and 
both boys and girls soon became adepts in crime, 
and entered unhesitatingly on the downward 
path. Beaten and abused at home, treated worse 
than animals, no other result could be expected. 
In the prisons, to which sooner or later these un- 
happy children gravitated, there was no separa- 
tion of them from hardened criminals. Their 
previous education in vice rendered them 
apt scholars in the school of crime, and they 
ripened into criminals as they advanced in years.” 

Those acquainted with conditions in New 
York before the advent of the society have 
stated that there were ten thousand homeless 
boys roaming the streets by day and taking what 
scant shelter they could find at night. The 
wharves were overrun with them. The public 
manifested no interest in them unless to search 
them out for committing crime. 

Nearly a half century of concentrated ef- 
fort has witnessed the gradual disappearance of 
many of the more open and glaring phases of 
cruelty to children. They are only kept to a 
minimum by the eternal vigilance of trained and 


Elbridge T. Gerry 79 


experienced agents. Behind closed doors cruel 
persons still vent their unrestrained rage on little 
children. It is but a short time since a child was 
brought to the society’s shelter, whose body bore 
one hundred and eleven welts. “‘ His teeth were 
broken and his eye nearly torn from its socket. 
The boy’s own father had beaten him with the 
buckle of a harness trace until, as the man said, 
‘ the kid couldn’t stand up.’ The poor little chap 
managed to crawl into a dark cellar, where his 
piteous moans aroused a neighbor, who notified 
the society.” 

Mr. John D. Wright, a wealthy New York 
Quaker, consented to serve as the society’s first 
President. Although well on in years, he gave 
careful thought and attention to the advancement 
of the organization until his death in 1879. At 
that time Elbridge T. Gerry was unanimously 
elected to succeed him. From the day when Mrs. 
Wheeler first came to the office of Mr. Bergh to 
ask for his assistance in the case of Mary Ellen, 
Mr. Gerry had been in most intimate touch with 
the progress of the child saving movement. Dur- 
ing Mr. Wright’s presidency, Mr. Gerry handled 
the legal work as its official counsel. The cor- 
porate powers conferred upon it to enforce the 
laws and the enactment of statutes to protect the 
children were the product of his labor. He knew 
the intricacies of its work in every aspect and the 
problems that confronted its management. Who 


80 Humane Society Leaders in America 


else could so completely fill the requirements 
needed to insure the permanency of the society 
and successfully carry out its program? Mr. 
Gerry faced these facts and unhesitatingly as- 
sumed the responsibility entailed in blazing the 
untrodden trail of child protection. Gradually 
the burden became so exacting that he was 
obliged to give up his general law practice and 
devote all of his energy to this work. For nine- 
teen years of the ripest period of his life he gave 
himself unreservedly to the arduous labor of 
developing the society’s protection powers. It 
became a holy mission which gripped his waking 
and sleeping hours. When others might have 
been discouraged and inclined to give up the 
struggle for the little ones who had no one else 
to champion their cause, he took hold with new 
vigor and determination and by sheer personal 
force achieved a mighty victory for humanity. 
President Gerry stoutly supported the pro- 
vision of the law which requires that children be 
sent to institutions of their own religious faith, 
believing that the parental faith of the child 
should not be interfered with if it became neces- 
sary to take it from its home for its protection 
and place it in a public institution. He there- 
fore stressed time and again the importance of 
thorough religious teaching of the faith of the 
parent so that the children should have the ad- 
vantage of that important factor in home train- 





COLONEL ERNEST K. COULTER 


General Manager, the New York Soctety for 
the Prevention of Cruelty to Children 


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Elbridge T. Gerry 81 


ing, which was, in his opinion, the most essential 
part of child education. 

He always insisted, from the formative days 
of the society, that child rescue work was an ex- 
clusive task and must not be confused with other 
phases of child welfare. “Our societies for the 
prevention of cruelty to children,’ he once 
said, “ were instituted for the express purpose, 
and for no other, of applying the arm of the 
law to the protection of the helpless. Their duty 
was to see that the law, which was potent in its 
terms, was not left to become inert and para- 
lyzed for want of applications to its object.” 

On another occasion he summarized the 
work of the society as he considered it should be 
conducted. “ First, it receives on commitment 
at its own expense by and subject to the courts 
all children charged with commission of crime 
who otherwise would be sent to the city prison. 
Second, it receives by and subject to the order 
of the courts, children who are themselves the 
unhappy victims of physical violence, or who are 
held as witnesses pending the criminal prosecu- 
tion of the cruelist. 

“The importance of these two subjects will 
be seen at a glance. But for the society, children 
arrested for any offense, great or trivial, would 
be subject to confinement in a penal institution, 
whether innocent or guilty, until the issue was 
finally determined. Again, children who are vic- 

6 


82 Humane Society Leaders in America 


tims of physical violence not only frequently re- 
quire medical care and attention, but a careful 
examination is often directed by order of the 
court, to determine the truth of their story, and 
to corroborate their evidence against the offen- 
der. All such examinations are made by skilled 
physicians assisted by a competent nurse, with 
every facility afforded by the best hospitals in 
the land.” 7 

The children’s shelter, as the institution 
for the temporary care of children is commonly 
called, was developed at an early date by socie- 
ties for the prevention of cruelty to children. 
The New York society equipped its first build- 
ing in 1880. Children’s shelters are in no sense 
of the word reform schools or orphanages, 
though they are in many instances the clearing 
house for such institutions. They afford the 
only satisfactory method of safeguarding young 
witnesses from the interference of those who 
would tamper with their testimony and thus de- 
feat the ends of justice. Another valuable fea- 
ture of shelters is the means they afford for the 
immediate relief of sufferers. They are open 
night and day to receive them. Deserted 
mothers, with families of little ones; children 
lost on the streets, or made helpless by accident, 
or by the cruelty of one or both parents; boys’ 
who have wandered away to become youthful 
tramps; young girls who have fallen into bad 


Elbridge T'. Gerry 83 


company; these and many others find such shel- 
ters temporary abiding places, where they are 
safe from harm and their immediate wants can 
receive attention. Until recently the children’s 
shelter was exclusively an agency of child pro- 
tective societies, but with the coming of the juve- 
nile court some cities have established similar 
refuges because there was no society for the pre- 
vention of cruelty to children in the place or 
because such society was comparatively inactive. 

The counsel of the New York society is 
specially deputized by the Attorney General of 
the state and by the district attorney to appear 
in cases involving children. From the beginning 
the society has been remarkably successful in its 
prosecutions. Some years ago the New York 
State Board of Charities attempted to gain con- 
trol over the society on the theory that it was a 
charity. The matter was carried to the Court of 
Appeals by President Gerry, which found (161 
N. Y. Reports, page 233) adversely to the 
Board. A further unsuccessful attempt was 
made during the last Constitutional Convention. 
The court held the society to be an arm of the 
law, which was to be used in criminal cases af- 
fecting children, instead of the ordinary police, 
who are overburdened with crimes involving 
adults. 

During the many stormy years President 
Gerry was actively at the helm, hundreds of in- 


84 Humane Society Leaders in America 


teresting cases were handled by the society. In 
some of them the trail of evidence led across the 
continent. In not a few instances the efforts of 
the New York society to gain necessary facts or 
secure possession of a child in a distant city 
aroused so much local interest that a society was 
formed with the one in New York as a model. 

The prosecutions of the padroni system 
stretched out across the sea to Italy. Among 
the most important of these cases was one 
brought against Ancarola, who, in 1879, 
brought seven Italian children to America for 
use as street musicians. The alertness of the 
society soon uncovered the evidence, and) the 
offender was brought to trial before the United 
States Court. Ancarola was convicted and, 
after a bitter fight, the decision was upheld by 
the United States Court. A sentence of five 
years meted out to the defendant helped mate- 
rially to bring this disgraceful practice to an 
end. 

The law placed on the New York statute 
books, through the personal efforts of President 
Gerry, to regulate the appearance of children in 
public performances has always been a difficult 
one to enforce. Little did the theatre-going 
crowds appreciate the tragedies hidden in the 
hearts and lives of the child actors who afforded 
them brief amusement. The society has always 
insisted on an impartial and exact application 


Elbridge T. Gerry 85 


of the law in such cases, and has thereby pre- 
vented many young lives from being perma- 
nently ruined. The rulings laid down by it have 
at times been most unpopular with the general 
public, but time and experience have gradually 
shown the need for the regulations imposed, and 
that the policy of the society in such matters was 
sound. It was necessary to educate the com- 
munity to new standards in many matters con- 
cerning children. Mr. Gerry was always 
patient, persistent and humane, although at 
times an aggressive educator. 

At all times Elbridge T. Gerry kept a firm 
hand upon the detail work of his society. In 
this way he inspired his assistants to give their 
best efforts to their respective tasks. The big- 
ger problems of management and policy re- 
ceived the careful scrutiny of a judicial mind. 
The society was not organized to cope with a 
passing evil, but one that could only be curbed 
by everlasting vigilance and application. Mr. 
Gerry knew this better than his critics and 
planned for permanency and stability. On his 
retirement from the presidency in 1899 he left 
an organization that was the largest of its kind 
in the world and one which even opponents ac- 
knowledged was efficient and practical. 

The state and the national humane move- 
ments have profited largely by his personal ser- 
vice. In 1888, he served as President of The 


86 Humane Society Leaders in America 


American Humane Association. Under its 
present administration he has taken the great- 
est interest in its development. He was the 
leading spirit in the formation of the Conven- 
tion of Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty 
to Children and Animals in New York State. 
This was the first state organization of inde- 
pendent societies that would act as a unit in ad- 
vancing or opposing legislation. He was elected 
its first President in 1890 and held the office for 
thirteen years. It has been at times very largely 
dependent upon his generosity for its financial 
support. 

While the bulk of President Gerry’s time 
was given for years to humane work, reference 
has already been made to public positions filled 
by him. Other public duties included: Gov- 
ernor New York Hospital (1878-1912); Trus- 
tee General Theological Seminary P. KE. 
Church (1877-1913); Trustee American Mu- 
seum of Natural History (1895-1902); Presi- 
dent of the Chi Psi Fraternity and Commodore 
of the New York Yacht Club (1886-1893). In 
1910, he received the degree of LL. D. from 
Nashotah. 

The younger son, Hon. Peter Goelet Gerry, 
United States Senator from Rhode Island, has 
rendered excellent service to the humane cause. 
His unfailing courtesy and his abiding sympathy 
for those that suffer, whether found in the human 


Elbridge T. Gerry 87 


or sub-human families, have won for him a large 
circle of friends among humanitarians. For a 
number of years he has been the First Vice- 
President of The American Humane Associa- 
tion, and has the liveliest concern and interest in 
its numerous activities. 

On Mr. Elbridge T. Gerry’s retirement from 
the Presidency of the New York Society in 
1899, he was succeeded by Hon. Vernon M. 
Davis, at the time foremost at the bar as a bril- 
liant and fearless prosecuting officer in the crim- 
inal courts of New York. Judge Davis occu- 
pied the office of President until 1903, retiring 
to go on the Bench of the New York Supreme 
Court. He was succeeded by Mr. John D. 
Lindsay, a prominent member of the New York 
bar, who in turn was followed by Hon. M. Linn 
Bruce, who had previously been Lieutenant 
Governor of New York State and a Justice of 
the Supreme Court. President Bruce brought 
to his office unquestioned abilities, and still fur- 
ther advanced the efficiency and scope of the 
New York Children’s Society. 

At the time the New York Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Children was formed 
in 1874, Mr. E. Fellows Jenkins, who had been 
the very active Superintendent of the Ameri- 
can Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to 
Animals since 1868, was proposed by Mr. Bergh 
as its secretary and superintendent. He con- 


88 Humane Society Leaders in America 


tinued to hold that position until his resignation 
in 1909. 

At the close of 1914, Col. Ernest K. Coulter 
was chosen to fill the superintendency left vacant 
by the death of the late Mr. Thomas D. Walsh, 
who succeeded Mr. Jenkins. 'The choice was a 
most fortunate one. Col. Coulter was one of 
the organizers of the New York Children’s 
Court and its clerk for ten years. In that way 
he had opportunity to study thoroughly the 
methods and the traditions of the society whose 
cases were daily before the court. As the 
founder of the Big Brother Movement he had 
lectured from coast to coast, and had become 
probably as well known personally to those in- 
terested in child protection as any man in Amer- 
ica. His book “ The Children in the Shadow ” 
has had great popularity, and has been instru- 
mental in moulding social thought. Col. Coul- 
ter has had extensive newspaper experience, and 
is a member of the New York bar. During the 
war with Germany he gave up his position to 
serve in the American Army. He was mustered 
out with the rank of Lieut. Colonel, and imme- 
diately resumed his connection with the 
children’s society under the title of General 
Manager. 


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GEORGE T. ANGELL 


founder and President Massachusetts Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, 1868 to 1909 


CHAPTER LV 


GEORGE T. ANGELL: THE APOSTLE 
OF HUMANE EDUCATION 


HILE George Thorndike Angell was 
the first to develop the full possibili- 
ties of humane education and wrote 

and spoke almost constantly in its behalf, it 
should not be forgotten that he was the founder 
and President of The Massachusetts Society for 
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, one of the 
earliest organizations of its kind, which has done 
a very practical and efficient work for animal 
protection. In addition, he was president of 
The American Humane Education Society, 
which was created for the distribution of hu- 
mane literature and the diffusion of humane 
ideals and propaganda. No person could have 
been more devoted to the cause which he advo- 
cated than Mr. Angell. He was consistent in 
his efforts and never neglected an opportunity to 
help dumb animals and to spread humane 
education. 

No one else has inspired the writing and 
caused the distribution of so many pages of hu- 
mane literature. In the field of animal protec- 

89 


90 Humane Society Leaders in America 


tion he shares with Henry Bergh the title of pio- 
neer. It detracts in no whit from the glory of 
either that they pursued different methods to 
achieve their desired ends. Although they be- 
gan their crusades at practically the same time 
there is no evidence that they consulted one an- 
other to any extent or had more than a slight 
acquaintance. Each was a law unto himself. 
Bergh was distant and reserved, with few close 
personal friends. Angell was warm and enthu- 
siastic, with multitudes of warm friends every- 
where. 

Mr. Angell was born at Southbridge, 
Worcester County, Mass., June 5, 1823. He 
died in Boston, March 16, 1909. His life was 
full of stirring events. Near its close he once 
said: “I have succeeded in everything I have 
tried to do.” ‘This was not the boast of an ego- 
tist but the candid expression of an optimist. 
He believed his life was divinely guided. This 
led him to view all his undertakings with a con- 
fidence of fulfilment that men with less faith 
never would have undertaken. Every task was 
approached through prayer, though he was not 
narrow or fanatical in his religious attitude. He 
worked in closest harmony with people of all 
faiths and secured their warmest cooperation in 
forwarding his humane mission. 

With the acumen of a modern advertising 
specialist, he capitalized his personality. He 


George T. Angell | 91 


kept his name before the masses by circulating 
Our Dumb Animals among those who moulded 
public opinion. Each issue reached every news- 
paper office in America, every college president, 
each member of Congress, and, within Massa- 
chusetts, every clergyman, lawyer, judge, and 
state legislator, besides the police force of Bos- 
ton and thousands of school children scattered 
throughout America. Whether he was regarded 
as a fanatic or revered as a leader in a great 
moral movement, his name came to stand for 
‘“ animal protection” and “ humane education.”’ 

But Mr. Angell did not limit his propaganda 
to the printed page. He was a convincing 
speaker and understood fully the art of public 
address. ‘The pulpit, the lyceum, the stage, the 
school room, the grange platform, even the as- 
semblies in penitentiary or prison, afforded him 
the opportunity to reach thousands, who helped | 
to pass on the lessons of kindness and mercy. 
No one has to his credit the founding of so 
many animal protective societies, or has so in- 
fluenced the trend of constructive humane 
thought as George Thorndike Angell, the Hu- 
mane Educator. 

It is a strange coincidence that at about the 
time Henry Bergh reached his decision to de- 
vote his life to animal protection, Mr. Angell 
drew a will, in 1864, in which the following para- 
graph appeared: 


92 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


“It has long been my opinion, that there is 
much wrong in the treatment of domestic ani- 
mals; that they are too often overworked, over- 
punished, and, particularly in winter and in 
times of scarcity, underfed. All these I think 
great wrongs, particularly the last; and it is my 
earnest wish to do something towards awakening 
public sentiment on this subject; the more so, 
because these animals have no power of com- 
plaint, or adequate human protection, against 
those who are disposed to do them injury. I do 
therefore direct that all the remainder of my 
property not herein before disposed of shall, 
within two years after the decease of my mother 
and myself, or the survivor, be expended by my 
trustees in circulating in common schools, Sab- 
bath schools, or other schools, or otherwise, in 
such manner as my trustees shall deem best, such 
books, tracts, or pamphlets as in their judgment 
will tend most to impress upon the minds of 
youth their duty towards those domestic animals 
which God may make dependent upon them.” 

Both of these knights of humanity were born 
in 1823; Bergh in a home of wealth, with every 
opportunity for a great commercial career; An- 
gell in a Baptist parsonage in a little Massachu- 
setts town. ‘The boyhood of each was marked 
with a deep love for animals and an abiding 
sense of justice. Mr. Angell was born with no 
silver spoon. His father, Rev. George Angell, 


George T. Angell 93 


died when he was only four years old. He had 
been a much loved pastor, but he left his son 
George little in a material way. Mrs. Angell 
was the daughter of Paul Thorndike. At the 
time of her marriage she was teaching school, 
and was obliged to resume such work on the 
death of her husband. Her devotion was a won- 
derful inspiration to George, who often declared 
“No man ever had a better mother.” Much of 
his boyhood was spent among relatives in small 
New England towns. At fourteen he entered 
a Boston drygoods store, where he remained two 
years. His mother was determined that he 
should receive a college education. After a brief 
preparatory period he matriculated at Brown 
University in 1842, but because of the expense 
transferred to Dartmouth, from which he gradu- 
ated with the class of 1846. His mother had 
helped him as she could, but the bulk of the cost 
of his education he had earned by teaching 
school. 

A wealthy relative in Salem soon offered him 
a chance to study law in his office. A position 
was secured as a teacher in the Boston public 
schools, which not only provided his expenses, 
but enabled him to partially support his mother, 
pay off a college debt of $300, and have a 
bank account of $1200 at the end of three 
years. In 1851 he was admitted to the bar. For 
a number of years he enjoyed successful part- 


94 Humane Society Leaders in America 


nerships with several prominent Boston attor- 
neys, including Samuel E. Sewall, an able law- 
yer and a prominent abolitionist. This last con- 
nection continued for fourteen years and was a 
most happy and prosperous one. In order to 
gain more time for his public life, it was volun- 
tarily dissolved, and Mr. Angell took in a junior . 
partner. At the end of nine years he gave up 
professional work entirely to devote his atten- 
tion to the service of the human and sub-human 
sufferers. As an attorney, Mr. Angell was suc- 
cessful in court work, but on account of his 
health he preferred to build up an office practice. 
His Yankee shrewdness and unfailing integrity 
were great factors in advancing the interests of 
his clients. One of the best evidences of his 
ability was the fact that in a little less than 
twenty years he was able to build up a fortune 
sufficiently large to enable him to withdraw from 
his profession and devote himself entirely to 
philanthropic efforts. 

He had often been shocked by acts of cruelty 
to animals so prevalent in the period preceding 
the organization of anticruelty societies. But 
there was no law under which the cruelist could 
be brought to justice. It required a flagrant act 
of cruelty within his own state to focus atten- 
tion on the evil sufficiently to arouse the slum- 
bering flame of an outraged conscience. In his 
“ Autobiography” he describes a few of the 


George T. Angell 95 


wrongs that were then prevalent in every state in 
the Union. 

“ Calves taken from their mothers when too 
young to eat hay were carted through our streets 
and lay in heaps at the cattle-markets, tied, and 
piled on each other like sticks of wood; and they 
were bled several times before they were killed, 
to make their flesh look whiter and more deli- 
cate. Sheep, from which their fleeces had been 
taken, stood, in cold weather, about the slaugh- 
ter-yards shivering for days before they were 
killed. Nothing had been done to lessen the 
horrors of cattle transportation. Old horses, 
long past service, were whipped up and down the 
streets of Brighton, and sometimes sold for 
thirty-seven and a half cents each. Worn-out 
and aged horses, dogs, and other animals were 
ignorantly and thoughtlessly killed, in ways 
most brutal. A man in my town near Boston, 
who had mortgaged his stock of cattle to an- 
other, quarrelled with him, locked the stable 
doors, and starved them all to death in their 
stalls to prevent his getting his pay. There was 
no law in Massachusetts to punish him!” 

The culminating act was a horse race be- 
tween Brighton and Worcester, on Washing- 
ton’s birthday, 1868, in which two of the finest 
horses were driven to death. Mr. Angell said: 
“TI had heard that Mr. Bergh had started a 
society in New York and I determined that 


96 Humane Society Leaders in America 


somebody must take hold of this business, and I 
might as well as anybody.”’ Then occurred one 
of the characteristic acts of his life. He wrote 
a letter to the Boston Advertiser in which he re- 
counted the details of the race and called upon 
those who were interested to join him in form- 
ing a society for the prevention of cruelty to ani- 
mals. 

The following morning, February 26, 1868, 
a number of distinguished people called upon 
him and offered their cooperation. Among them 
was Mrs. William Appleton, a woman of influ- 
ence and position. She had already seen Mr. 
Bergh and had the signatures of some ninety or 
more of her influential friends, who had agreed 
to become patrons of such an organization. 

Mr. Angell acutely realized that his oppor- 
tunity had come to right the wrongs he had seen 
committed upon his speechless friends. Letters 
were addressed to the papers calling for mem- 
bers and funds. The act of incorporation, which 
Mrs. Appleton had already submitted to the 
Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Repre- 
sentatives, was redrafted, though this influen- 
tial personage assured him that there was no 
chance of a charter being granted. Mr. Angell, 
however, had so aroused public sentiment that, 
on March 23, 1868, before the close of the ses- 
sion, the charter was voted. 

The following day the Boston papers con- 





uOojsog ‘/vj1gSOFY [v1AOWMA]Y 1]25Upy “J. 28403 





George T. Angell 97 


tained a call for a meeting to organize the 
society. On the 31st of March, 1868, about 
forty persons gathered in Mr. Angell’s law 
office, adopted the constitution and _ by-laws 
which he had drawn, and elected him President. 
He held the office continuously and with ever 
increasing effectiveness until his death on March 
16, 1909. The Board of Directors contained 
the names of some of Boston’s foremost citizens. 
At the close of the meeting Mr. Angell and the 
newly elected Secretary, Mr. Russell Sturgis, 
Jr., withdrew into a private office and together 
knelt and prayed for God’s blessing on the en- 
terprise, a practice that Mr. Angell always fol- 
lowed in beginning all of the work that was to 
make his name a household word. 

As with the New York society, the next step 
was to lay the foundation of a code of laws under 
which the society should have power to appre- 
hend those guilty of wrongdoing against the 
lower animals. Mr. Angell drafted a law, and 
by the use of newspaper publicity and extensive 
correspondence, secured favorable action by the 
legislature on May 14, 1868. “It was already 
clear to my mind,” wrote Mr. Angell, “that I 
was entering upon my life work; and my plans 
reached far beyond anything that I could learn 
had been thus far undertaken.” He not only 
recognized the need of a state-wide prosecuting 
agency, but also realized the importance of an 


ri 


98 Humane Society Leaders in America 


educational program that would remove the 
source of cruelty. 

While the legislature was considering the 
novel bill that had been presented to it by Mr. 
Angell, he was busily planning how his society 
would enforce it when it became available. 
Members were needed for moral and financial 
support. It was while he was trying to devise 
some satisfactory scheme for canvassing the city 
that one of the “inspirations ” occurred which 
he regarded as providential. 

Meeting by chance a prominent police offi- 
cial, he asked where the canvassers could be ob- 
tained. “ Borrow some of the police,” was his 
suggestion. The idea was charged with possi- 
bilities. Permission was quickly obtained from 
the necessary officials and seventeen finely 
groomed policemen were detailed to Mr. An- 
gell for three weeks. The response was prompt 
and gave the society 1200 of the 1600 members 
and put about $13,000 in its treasury. An- 
other incident in this campaign which Mr. An- 
gell regarded as providential was the fact that 
the opposition candidate for mayor was can- 
vassed among the last. Had he known sooner 
what was going on, the policemen would never 
have been permitted to finish their work. 

Humane history was being made rapidly in 
old Boston. Six days after the passage of the 
anticruelty law, Mr. Angell called his directors 


George T. Angell 99 


together and proposed the publication of a 
monthly magazine which should be widely cir- 
culated in behalf of humane education... The 


idea was acceptable to them. ‘‘ How many will 
you print?” 

“Two hundred thousand,” was the immedi- 
ate reply. } 


“ How much will it cost?” 

‘“ Between two and three thousand dollars.” 

It is not difficult to imagine that the conser- 
vative business men on the directorate were 
“startled.” It was a bold move, but time has 
well established its wisdom. Accordingly, on 
June 2, 1868, appeared the first edition of Our 
Dumb Animals, the pioneer magazine of its class 
in the world. Since that date it has never missed 
a month when its messages of good will to ani- 
mals have not been scattered widely throughout 
the nation and in many foreign countries as well. 
The value of the publication to the Massachu- 
setts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to 
Animals and later to The American Humane 
Education Society, was often referred to by Mr. 
Angell in later years. Not only did it teach 
many valuable lessons of kindness, which cannot 
be measured in money, but it proved a most es- 
sential aid in building up the society’s member- 
ship and inducing persons to make their wills in 
favor of the society. The distribution was most 
carefully considered from both standpoints. The 


100 Humane Society Leaders in America 


editions ran from 50,000 to 100,000 or more 
copies. } 

But to go back to that first edition of 200,000 
copies. Mr. Angell sought to have the police 
distribute the magazine from house to house, 
much as they had canvassed the city for mem- 
berships. When he broached the matter to the 
authorities he was told that the opposition candi- 
date for mayor had caused a resolution to be 
passed by the City Council forbidding the use 
of the police for any private or corporate enter- 
prise. As Mr. Angell was leaving the Mayor’s 
office he discovered a friend who, on hearing of 
the situation, agreed to secure the approval of 
the aldermen. He was as good as his word, and 
the Boston police force delivered more than 
30,000 copies of Our Dumb Animals without 
any charge whatever to the society. The same 
plan was adopted for handling the distribution 
in other cities. It was another one of the “ prov- 
idential ” situations which seemed to follow Mr. 
Angell through life. 

The Massachusetts Society for the Preven- 
tion of Cruelty to Animals was now fully organ- 
ized and prosecuting agents were appointed for 
Boston and other cities of the state. The first 
case prosecuted was for overloading a team of 
horses. The court ruled the case out. Mr. An- 
gell reviewed the evidence in the Boston Tran- 
script and so clearly set forth the evidence gov- 


George T. Angell 101 


erning the overloading of animals that Bishop 
included it in his “‘ Statutory Crimes.” This 
statement is still accepted as sound law. 

By the end of the first year of the society’s 
existence Mr. Angell had broken down in health 
from overwork and left for a rest in Europe, in 
the Spring of 1869. While abroad he became a 
warm friend of John Colam, the secretary of 
the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 
to Animals, of London, England. His glowing 
account of the value of an official magazine, such 
as his society had in Our Dwmb Animals, moved 
the English society to begin the publication of 
The Anmal World, a name partially suggested 
by Mr. Angell. Its initial number was pub- 
lished in October, 1869. It is the second oldest 
magazine devoted to animal protection. By in- 
vitation, he addressed a meeting at the home of 
Miss Coutts, later Baroness Burdett-Coutts, 
then the richest and most philanthropic woman 
in England. So deeply impressed was she by 
his plea for humane education that she consented 
to head the ladies’ humane education committee 
of the English society. Mr. Angell had the 
pleasure of attending a meeting of the French 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Ani- 
mals, in Paris, and was the only American dele- 
gate at a World’s International Congress of 
Animal Protective Societies held in Zurich. 

During the fifteen months Mr. Angell was 


102 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


abroad, he wrote regularly for Our Dumb Ani- 
mals and a glance through its old files gives 
some very interesting memoirs of his trip. His 
suggestion that the Royal Society offer a series 
of prizes to the pupils of the London schools for 
the best essays on kindness to animals was tried 
out with excellent results. Mr. Angell became 
a warm advocate of this method of stimulating 
interest in the humane cause on his return to 
America, and during his long connection with 
the society distributed several thousand dollars 
in various prize competitions. 

Mr. Angell had hardly time to adjust him- 
self to the affairs of his society on his return to 
Boston, in 1870, before he was sought by Hon. 
John C. Dore, of Chicago, IIl., to go to that city 
to aid the movement that had been started there. 
The invitation was accepted and Mr. Angell ar- 
rived in Chicago, October 30th. At the end of 
six months of the hardest work, during which 
time he gave his services and paid out six hun- 
dred dollars of-his own money, he had the pleas- 
ure of seeing the Illinois Humane Society well 
established with Edwin Lee Brown as its first 
president. 

This was the beginning of a series of humane 
missionary journeys through the states, as far 
West as Dakota and South to New Orleans, that 
were to continue as long as his health would per- 
mit him to travel. Through his counsel, the in- 


George T. Angell 103 


fluence of his lectures and the compelling power 
of his enthusiasm, he probably led to the forma- 
tion of more societies, large and small, than any 
other humanitarian. He always paid his own 
expenses and frequently spent considerable sums 
from his own purse, as in the case of Chicago, to 
insure the formation of a local anticruelty so- 
ciety. In this he was invariably successful, 
which was all the reward he asked for himself. 
He had the honor of addressing thousands of 
people in widely scattered districts and of vastly 
different social grades. Legislatures, churches, 
colleges, penitentiaries, schools, granges, and 
Sunday schools listened intently to his message 
of mercy. His lectures made a strong appeal 
and the directness and simplicity of his story 
went straight to the hearts of the people. 

Many interesting anecdotes have been pre- 
served of his speaking tours. One which he re- 
lates in his Autobiography will suffice: 

“At Brattleboro, Vt., I engaged the town- 
hall, agreeing to pay all expenses and for its use, 
and had notice given in the schools. The night 
of my lecture happened to be one of the hottest 
of the season. I went to the hall a quarter of 
an hour in advance, and found it not lighted, 
only the janitor and half a dozen rough boys. 
‘Why don’t you light the hall?’ said I. ‘ Well, 
I thought I'd wait, and see if anybody was 
coming, said he. “Coming!” said I; ‘ why, 


104 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


here’s half a dozen boys already.’ ‘ You ain’t 
going to lectur to these boys, are you?’ said he. 
‘Certainly I am,’ said I, ‘ if nobody else comes. 
One of them may be governor of Vermont, one 
of these days, for aught I know.’ So he lit the 
hall, and gradually some hundreds gathered; 
and now they have a society in Brattleboro, Vt., 
for the prevention of cruelty to animals.” 

But not all of his time was spent away from 
home. At no time did he lose his grasp on the 
affairs of the Massachusetts Society for the Pre- 
vention of Cruelty to Animals or its magazine, 
Our Dumb Animals. If the society’s funds were 
low he found ways to increase them. When he 
wanted state legislation he drafted it and fought 
for its passage. If publicity was needed in order 
to combat some atrocious form of cruelty, he 
flooded the local papers with its exposure and 
condemnation. 

He had the satisfaction of seeing live 
pigeon shooting abolished by law in the face of. 
the most violent opposition, at about the time 
the sport was being legalized in New York. He 
went to Washington and helped secure legisla- 
tion, not all that was desired, but a step in the 
right direction, regulating interstate shipments of 
livestock. He had the honor of writing a por- 
tion of President Hayes’ inaugural address deal- 
ing with the transportation of animals. Presi- 
dent Garfield received him courteously and 


George T. Angell | 105 


aided his work. In fact, not until he fearlessly 
denounced the hunting trips of President Roose- 
velt, that caused the public schools of Washing- 
ton, D. C., to bar Our Dumb Animals, did he 
have any difficulty in securing recognition from 
the White House. 

A. big mile stone in Mr. Angell’s life was the 
creation of the American Band of Mercy, with 
the help of Rev. Thomas Timmins, of England, 
who visited Boston during July, 1882. Mr. 
Timmins had had extensive experience with the 
English Band of Mercy, originated by Mrs. 
Smithies, shortly after Mr. Angell’s visit to 
England. Between them the whole plan of the 
movement was sketched out as it is now fol- 
lowed. ‘This means of reaching the child was a 
popular one and was quickly taken up. By 1921 
there had. been 131,688 Bands formed in the 
United States. 

Another great achievement, and the one 
which Mr. Angell ranked as his greatest, was 
the founding of The American Humane Educa- 
tion Society, in 1889. It originally had the same 
directors as The Massachusetts Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, but with dif- 
ferent duties. During the twenty years, or more, 
that Mr. Angell had been devoting to the sub- 
ject of cruelty to animals he had conceived that 
humane education was of greater importance 
than prosecution. While the Massachusetts 


106 Humane Society Leaders in America 


Society had been unable to finance this phase of 
its work outside of the state, he had done much 
personally. His new organization had for its 
purpose the creation and the distribution of such 
propaganda as would be useful to humane work- 
ers. He also proposed to send out organizers to 
those communities that could not afford to 
finance their own work. ‘The society has done 
and is doing a most meritorious work. Millions 
of pages of literature have been distributed, 
much of it entirely free, and several missionaries 
are kept in sparsely settled or poor districts to 
look after animal protection. Several of its 
workers are colored people, who toil among 
their own race. 

“ Black Beauty ” has probably been the most 
popular of all the literature published by ‘The 
American Humane Education Society. This 
book had a very limited circulation in England, 
where it was published some twelve years before 
it was brought to the attention of Mr. Angell 
by that noble humanitarian, Miss Georgiana 
Kendall, of New York. He at once pronounced 
it “ The Uncle Tom’s Cabin of the Horse ” and 
set about securing an edition of 100,000 copies. 
Before his death he had seen its circulation reach 
3,000,000 copies. It was translated into a num- 
ber of foreign languages, and made the most 
widely read book in the world, outside of the 
Bible. The demand for it continues steadily 


George T. Angell 107 


from year to year. The whole story has been 
dramatized for the stage and has been adapted 
to moving pictures. 

Mr. Angell was a great friend of dogs and 
often fought for their rights before the legisla- 
ture. He did much to allay the ill-grounded 
fears of hydrophobia, denounced vivisection, and 
took active. stands against all forms of animal 
abuse. 

Posterity will know him because of the in- 
valuable service he rendered the animal king- 
dom. He is entitled to be remembered for the 
other contributions he made to safeguard hu- 
manity. At the risk of being much misunder- 
stood, he exposed the general practice followed 
of adulterating foodstuffs and was among the 
first to seek legislation to prevent it. His pub- 
lic exposure of the use of a poisonous substance 
on a newly introduced enamel ware caused the 
manufacturers to withdraw the product from the 
market. He pointed out the dangers arising 
from the use of poisons in the coloring of wall 
paper. One whole winter was spent in Wash- 
ington in an attempt to have Congress pass a 
law against poisonous adulterations. His own 
state ultimately did so and his nation-wide fight 
undoubtedly did much to bring about the pres- 
ent pure food laws. 

Early and late he wrote and lectured on crime 
and advocated the extension of humane educa- 


108 Humane Society Leaders in America 


tion as a remedy against it. He was opposed to 
war and scarcely an issue of Our Dumb Am- 
mals appeared without giving space to the de- 
sirability of international courts of arbitration. 

With the exception of a brief period he acted 
as the editor of his magazine. Even towards the 
close of his long life, when the ravages of 
asthma prevented his going to the office, except 
for the annual meetings of his societies, he edited 
it from his own home and directed the work of 
the two organizations. His last editorial was 
written within a few hours of his death. Though 
he realized his end was near, because of his diffi- 
culty in breathing, he said that “he should live 
three years longer to accomplish plans he had in 
mind.” 

The press all over the country, in announc- 
ing his death, devoted much space to his memory. 
Thirty-eight draught horses were led behind the 
hearse bearing the remains of their champion. 
Hundreds of Boston’s work horses wore black 
rosettes as evidence of the affection felt by horse 
owners and drivers for the man who demanded 
a square deal for beast as well as man. Judged 
by the work which he accomplished, George 
Thorndike Angell deserves to be ranked among 
the greatest humanitarians in the world’s. his- 
tory. All agree that his contribution to the 
humane cause was a mighty one and that the 
benefits of his earnest labors will survive as long 


George T. Angell 109 


as the world recognizes the principles of human- 
ity. 

His lovable nature was a joy and an inspira- 
tion. A stranger called at his home shortly be- 
fore his death, and as he left said to Mrs. An- 
gell: “I felt I could not go home without shak- 
ing hands with Mr. Angell. The inspiration I | 
have received from talking with that man will 
remain throughout life.” It was ever so. His 
heart was where the world could see. He was a 
fighter for what he believed in, but his methods 
were clean and open. He inspired confidence 
and loyalty in his staff by his sincerity and mag- 
nanimity. A friend once said of him, “ One 
could not talk with him five minutes without re- 
alizing and appreciating his wise judgment.” 

Mr. Angell married Mrs. Eliza A. Martin, 
of Nahant, Mass., in 1872. He was very fond 
of her and depended greatly on her for advice 
and encouragement. He once declared that she 
had prolonged his life ten years. Mrs. Angell 
still lives. She is a most loyal and ardent hu- 
manitarian, proud of her privilege of having 
been permitted to share the labor of her illustri- 
ous husband. 

The memory of George I’. Angell has been 
preserved to posterity by a magnificent drinking 
fountain for animals, erected in Boston by the 
school children of the city. A large Boston pub- 
lic school also bears his name. His crowning 


110 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


memorial was the erection of a great and beauti- 
ful building in Boston which houses the two | 
great organizations which he founded and pro- 
vides hospital treatment for thousands of ani- 
mals, annually. It is known as The Angell 
Animal Memorial Hospital. 

Shortly after the death of Mr. Angell, a spe- 
cial committee of the two societies which he had 
founded and developed so wisely, selected Rev. 
Francis Harold Rowley, D.D., as his successor. 
In its report the committee stated: “ Dr. Row- 
ley is so far a man of the world that his activi- 
ties have not been confined to a parish or to the 
pulpit. His interest in the humane movement 
led him to assume for several years the duties of 
secretary of The American Humane Associa- 
tion, where he became familiar with the work 
and established an acquaintance and connection 
with many of those who are still engaged in it in 
various parts of the country. He is in touch 
with other humane workers and movements in 
our field, and it will especially interest those who 
hold in respect the memory of Mr. Angell to 
know that Dr. Rowley was one of his valued 
friends and one of the few toward whom he 
looked in his later years as a possible successor.” 

During the period that Dr. Rowley has been 
President of the joint societies, they have ex- 
panded their work in every direction. It was 
under his leadership that the beautiful Angell 


George T. Angell 111 


Memorial Animal Hospital was erected and 
formally opened, February 25, 1915. The hos- 
pital is most modern in its equipment and has 
ministered to a large number of animals. An- 
other material addition to the equipment of the 
society was the acquiring of the Nevins Rest 
and Boarding Farm for Horses, at Methuen, in 
1917. The buildings have been altered to meet 
the demands of the work and the farm put in 
condition so that a large number of animals may 
be conveniently handled. The revenue derived 
from the sale of farm products aids to no small 
extent in meeting the expenses of the place. 
President Rowley has seen a large increase 
in the revenue of the Massachusetts Society for 
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals since he 
assumed charge. The working force of paid 
agents has increased from ten to sixteen and the 
total number of paid employees from twenty- 
one to fifty-one. Dr. Rowley has been particu- 
larly active in securing additional humane legis- 
lation in his state. The law to protect horses in 
stables from the danger of fire is the first of its 
kind ever enacted. He has also secured a law 
by which the right is given agents of the Massa- 
chusetts society to be present at all places where 
animals are held for slaughter, are slaughtered 
or are received or delivered for transportation. 
Probably Dr. Rowley has done more than any 
other individual in this country towards creating 


112 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


a public opinion in favor of humane methods of 
slaughtering cattle, swine, and sheep. 

The Jack London Club, which he founded 
in 1918, has enrolled more than 175,000 mem- 
bers who are pledged to use their influence 
against the use of trained animals on the stage. 

The missionary work of the American Hu- 
mane Education Society has been expanded by 
Dr. Rowley by placing ten additional workers, 
some of whom only give part time, in the field. 
The foreign work has been enlarged by the 
appointment of additional foreign representa- 
tives, and the publication and gratuitous distri- 
bution of large quantities of humane literature 
printed in several different languages. 

Dr. Rowley has been able to exert a valu- 
able influence along the lines of animal protec- 
tion and broader aspects of humane education 
through his able articles in Our Dumb Animals. 
He has also prepared a large number of leaflets 
and pamphlets, especially on the humane slaugh- 
ter of animals, that have received a wide circula- 
tion, and he is the author of “The Humane 
Idea,” one of the best concise histories that have 
been written on the humane movement. His 
public addresses on the broader humanity have 
charmed many audiences all over the United 
States with the beauty and grace of their deliv- 
ery, and have won his hearers to a better under- 





Dr. Francis H. ROWLEY 


President, Massachusetts Society for the Prevention 
of Cruelty to Animals since 1910 





George T. Angell 113 


standing of their duty towards the brute crea- 
tion. 

Dr. Rowley was born in Hilton, N. Y., July 
25, 1854, the son of John Rowley, M.D., and 
Mary Jane (Smith) Rowley. He was educated 
in the public schools and the University of 
Rochester, receiving his degree of A.B. from the 
latter institution in 1875. The next three years 
were spent in study for the ministry at Roches- 
ter Theological Seminary, from which he re- 
ceived the degree of B.D. In 1897 he was hon- 
ored by his alma mater with the honorary degree 
_ of Doctor of Divinity. In 1878 he married Ida 
A. Babcock, of Rochester, N. Y. They have 
one daughter and three sons. 

Some two years before the death of Mr. An- 
gell he appointed Mr. Guy Richardson as the 
secretary of The Massachusetts Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and The 
American Humane Education Society, recog- 
nizing his superior qualifications for this im- 
portant work. For a number of years Mr. Rich- 
ardson had been closely associated with the edi- 
torial and business desks of large newspapers 
which gave him a wealth of valuable experience 
in efficiently handling the editorship of Our 
Dumb Animals, to which he succeeded on the 
death of Mr. Angell in 1909. Under his direc- 
tion the magazine has been brought to a high 
standard of the publisher’s art. As the secre- 

8 


114 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


tary of the two societies, he has an extensive cor- 
respondence with humanitarians in this coun- 
try and abroad, which has enabled him to keep 
in very close touch with the development of the 
anticruelty movement. Many have come to 
know him personally by meeting him at the an- 
nual gatherings of The American Humane As- 
sociation, where he usually has a large exhibit 
of the literature published by his societies. He 
has contributed some excellent papers before 
these meetings on various phases of humane edu- 
cation and has taken a prominent part in the 
development of Humane Sunday and Be Kind 
to Animals Week, as a national observance. 


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Dr. WILLIAM O. STILLMAN 


President, The American Humane Association 
1905 to 1924 


CHAPTER V 


DR. WILLIAM O. STILLMAN AND 
THE AMERICAN HUMANE 
ASSOCIATION 


HE name of William O. Stillman will be 
TT always associated, in the minds of humani- 
tarians, with the first great national de- 
velopment of the anticruelty cause in the United 
States. In 1905 he was first elected President of 
The American Humane Association. He found 
the work weak, demoralized and _ ineffective. 
When he assumed office the Association had few 
members, very inadequate income and small in- 
fluence. It had no regular office, no paid em- 
ployees and did little more than hold annual con- 
ventions, at which addresses were made and dis- 
cussions took place. ‘The Association published 
an annual report, which, unfortunately, had lit- 
tle influence in moulding public sentiment. Its 
existence yielded small results. 

As years passed, under President Stillman’s 
management, all this was changed for the better. 
A strong national organization was gradually 
built up, with many of the most distinguished 
names in the United States included among its 

115 


116 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


list of honorary officers. Representative hu- 
manitarians are found on its Board of Directors. 
It became an honor to be connected with its work 
and to be included in its membership. Large 
offices were secured and filled with well trained 
employees. An official monthly magazine was 
established. This goes everywhere and is widely 
quoted. It prints tons of humane literature, 
which finds a circulation throughout the United 
States and in many other countries. The work 
has become truly nationalized and has received 
much international recognition. In 1914, Presi- 
dent Stillman was elected the President of the 
First International Federation of Societies for 
Animal Protection, in London, England, and 
has received honorary certificates and diplomas 
from many lands. Mainly through his efforts, 
The American Humane Association has become 
the effective national champion of the humane 
cause in the United States. It has been found 
ever ready to fight humane battles and to stand 
unflinchingly for humane principles. When Dr. 
Stillman first assumed the presidency of The 
American Humane Association there were 280 
anticruelty societies in the United States. The 
last humane census shows that there are 565 ac- 
tive societies. 

Bergh, Angell, Gerry and a host of other 
humane leaders, began their labors when legis- 
lation in behalf of children and animals was 


Doctor William O. Stillman 117 


practically non-existent. 'The cause was not 
popular. Their efforts were subjected to more 
or less opposition; popular approval did not 
come at once. Sometimes the masses ruled them 
out because their sports were stopped and the 
press was slow to recognize the justice and 
ethics for which they contended. But time pro- 
duced changes. The unselfish labor of the 
pioneers first aroused interest; then commanded 
respect and finally won admiration. It became 
good form to be referred to as a humanitarian. 
Those high in public life came to recognize the 
importance of stimulating organizations that 
took the Golden Rule as their motto and ex- 
tended its application so as to include even the 
animal world. 

Able local humane leaders, however, were 
slowly developed. Here and there a man or 
woman was found who recognized the need of 
the anticruelty movement. Some enthusiasts at- 
tempted to build their work on mere sentiment. 
The results accomplished were ephemeral. 
Others applied practical business methods to 
ameliorate the hard lot of the unfortunate and 
achieved success. Many labored hard for a time 
but became discouraged at the unresponsiveness 
of their communities and gave up the fight. 
Those that persevered gained the victory, and 
their accomplishments serve as memorials to 
their intensive struggles. Most of the success- 


118 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


ful workers regarded their own field of labor as 
so vast that they gave little aid to those who 
toiled in neighboring cities. National leaders 
were few and far apart. 

The precarious existence of The American 
Humane Association, which was founded in 
1877, was at times discouraging to its friends. 
Much had been undertaken, but there was 
needed able leadership to coordinate its activi- 
ties and to unify humanitarians. In 1905 mat- 
ters reached a crisis. ‘The President who had 
been elected was appointed to a diplomatic 
post in Russia, leaving the presidency vacant. 
Where was his successor to be found. Who 
would he be? It was at this juncture that the 
Directors of this Association turned to a pop- 
ular humanitarian at Albany, New York, who, 
some years before, had taken a struggling local 
humane organization and built it into one of the 
most flourishing anticruelty societies in the 
country. ‘They prevailed upon him to assume 
the presidency. To-day, the name of Dr. Wil- 
ham QO. Stillman and his work are known wher- 
ever humane societies exist through the world. 

Wilham Olin Stillman was born September 
9, 1856, in Normansville, a small town on the 
outskirts of Albany, N. Y., the only child of 
Rev. Stephen Lewis Stillman and Lucretia 
Miller Stillman. His father was a well-known 
Methodist clergyman who traced his ancestors 


Doctor William O. Stillman 119 


back through early Colonial history to a pros- 
perous English family. His mother’s people 
were of Holland Dutch stock and served the 
Colonies during the Revolutionary War. At 
the age of twelve, he lost his father and removed 
with his mother to Albany. As a boy, he was 
a great lover of books and acquired a library 
of more than 1,200 volumes before his twelfth 
birthday. He delighted in the study of com- 
parative religions and history, and was quite the 
despair, of his mother’s pastor, who could only 
meet his arguments for religious liberalism by 
sending him home when the disputes became too 
intense. The spirit of toleration which he then 
developed has always been one of his marked 
traits and has enabled him to view great funda- 
mental principles of ethics in their broadest ap- 
plication to man and the sub-human species. 

In 1878 he received the degrees of M. D. 
and A. M. from Union College, and, though the 
youngest member of his class, he was graduated 
with the highest honors. The next five years 
were spent as a physician in a sanitarium at 
Saratoga Springs. He married Miss Frances 
M. Rice, of Boston, Mass., in 1880. Nearly all 
of 1883 and 1884 were spent by Dr. Stillman 
and his wife in Europe, where he studied medi- 
cine in London, Paris, Berlin, and Vienna. On 
his return to America he took up the practice of 


120 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


medicine in Albany, N. Y., rapidly achieving 
success and prominence in his profession. 

For many years he taught the history of 
medicine in the medical department of Union 
University. In spite of an ever growing prac- 
tice, he found time to write on medical matters. 
During the Bicentennial of the Granting of the 
Charter of Albany as an incorporated city, he 
was appointed chairman of the committee on 
historical exhibits. The loan exhibition gathered 
through his efforts was valued at three-quarters 
of a million dollars. The inspiration of this ex- 
hibit led to his founding of the Albany Histori- 
cal Society, which now has a splendid home of 
its own, and possesses a very valuable collection 
of historical antiques and modern paintings. 
His own collection of Indian relics is highly 
prized by the society. A few years later he cor- 
rectly located the battle of Bennington, which 
led ultimately to his being elected President of 
the New York State Historical Association. 

A society for the prevention of cruelty to 
children was organized in Albany County, New 
York, in 1887, and incorporated the following 
year. In 1889 the society took the name of The 
Mohawk and Hudson River Humane Society. 
An Albany County Society for the Prevention 
of Cruelty to Animals was organized in 1892. 
Two years later the two societies were consoli- 
dated under the title of the former. This was 


Doctor William O. Stillman 121 


the first time in the State of New York that this 
title was used for the combined work of child 
and animal protection. For two or three years 
Dr. Stillman had been an inactive member of 
the Children’s Society, but was dissatisfied that 
so meritorious an institution should be doing so 
small a work. Without solicitation on his part, 
he was elected President of The Mohawk and 
Hudson River Humane Society in 1892. 

As soon as he could shape a program, the 
society began to make a stir in Albany and 
nearby Troy, where it was then functioning. 
Dr. Stillman became a zealous advocate of 
humane ideals and also a fearless prosecutor of 
the cruelist. Often he investigated the cases 
himself and appeared in court to represent the 
society. When he found his agents were spend- 
ing more time in the office than in the discharge 
of their duties, he released them and tried others. 
By means of this selective process and careful 
training he developed some first-class humane 
agents, but the thought was impressed upon him 
that at some time a training school must be 
created which could supply anticruelty organi- 
zations with efficient and satisfactory officers. 

Gradually, demands were made upon his or- 
ganization to handle cases in adjoining counties, 
as the effectiveness of the society became known. 
To meet this, he caused branches to be organized 
until there are now twelve counties and twelve 


122 Humane Society Leaders in America 


cities included in the jurisdiction of The Mo- 
hawk and Hudson River Humane Society. 
Each county has its own individual Board of 
Directors, but is amenable to the central board. 
The year before Dr. Stillman took charge, less 
than 300 children and animals were cared for. 
This gradually increased until 10,000 children 
and 20,000 animals were being cared for by his 
society annually. The income increased from 
$700 to over $40,000 yearly. The working force 
grew from one employee to over thirty. 

The need of children’s shelters and head- 
quarters in Albany and Troy caused Dr. Still- 
man to launch building campaigns in both 
cities, which were successful. A splendid stone 
structure was erected in Troy through his initia- 
tive. It cost complete nearly $75,000, and has 
been copied in other cities. The resourcefulness 
of Dr. Stillman was illustrated by an incident 
in obtaining the Albany building, which had 
been a large, well-built hospital. The hospital 
had moved to a suburban site and the property 
had come into the hands of a wealthy real estate 
operator who intended to raze the structure and 
erect ten modern fiat houses on the site. Plans 
were drawn and work was ready to start; even 
some of the prospective houses were leased, be- 
fore Dr. Stillman realized how well adapted the 
building was to the purpose of the society. 
Without money for a building fund, he visited 


Doctor William O. Stillman 123 


the owner and told him of his desire to have the 
society own the building as a shelter for un- 
fortunate children. President Stillman. said, 
‘“ Wouldn’t you rather the building were con- 
verted into an institution where years after you 
are gone its walls will be sheltering helpless, 
maltreated children, than to make it yield you a 
money income that will disappear with your 
lifetime? Allow the society to acquire it and you 
will build a monument that cannot be effaced.” 
“Come back in two days,” was the laconic 
reply. The answer which was given two days 
later was satisfactory, and after a whirlwind 
campaign, funds were secured by which the so- 
ciety acquired a magnificent, great building, 
covering 125 feet on two streets, that houses its 
principal offices, furnishes a large shelter for 
children; also the roomy headquarters of The 
American Humane Association and the Ameri- 
can Red Star Animal Relief. It further pro- 
vides a large amount of profitable renting space. 
When the building was dedicated it was entirely 
paid for. It is in the very heart of Albany, and 
increasing in value yearly. 

Within the last few years a large helene and 
office building was purchased for the branch in 
Schenectady. Midway between Troy and Al- 
bany, the society owns a valuable rest farm for 
horses, on which it has erected a model shelter 
building for small animals. The society here 


124 Humane Society Leaders in America 


cares for lost and stray dogs and unwanted cats 
in five cities, and also looks after dog license en- 
forcement. The property of the society is very 
valuable, the Albany shelter having originally 
cost over $200,000, and the society has a very 
substantial and steadily growing endowment 
fund. ‘The organization is one of the strongest 
in the United States. Its policies and opera- 
tions are recognized as models and have been 
widely copied. 

Dr. Stillman has always been an advocate of 
team work. Public sentiment is shaped by mass 
action. He accordingly affiliated with the New 
York State Convention of Societies for the Pre- 
vention of Cruelty to Children and Animals. 
The year following his election as President of 
his local society, he attended The American 
Humane Association and International Hu- 
mane Congress held in Chicago, IIl., in 1893, 
under the presidency of John G. Shortall. 
Two years later he was made a Vice-President 
of the Association. His paper on “ Live Birds 
as ‘Targets,’ which was read at the Washing- 
ton meeting, in 1898, attracted wide attention 
among humanitarians throughout the country. 
At the Buffalo meeting, in 1901, he was placed 
on the Executive Committee, and in 1903 became 
one of the Directors. By this time his judg- 
ment was being sought on every question of im- 
portance by state and national humane leaders. 


Doctor William O. Stillman 125 


At the St. Louis meeting, in 1904, Dr. Al- 
bert W. Leffingwell was elected President of 
the Association, but on being appointed Consul 
to Warsaw, Russia, he resigned his position 
with the Association. Dr. Stillman had been 
much talked of for the place at the annual meet- 
ings, so that the Directors knew that in select- 
ing him to fill out the balance of the term they 
would make no mistake. The meeting for 1905 
was held in Philadelphia, where Dr. Stillman 
was reelected unanimously, as has been the case 
with convention after convention ever since. 

When he assumed his duties, the Association 
had no office, furniture or equipment. There 
were no employees. Its total receipts for the 
year, contributed by a very limited number of 
people and societies, were only a few hundred 
dollars. Interest was at a low ebb. Men and 
women who should have been supporting it held 
aloof and criticised because it did not exhibit 
greater efficiency. An executive was needed 
who could break down overconservatism; could 
command the confidence of the groups of hu- 
manitarians who represented different shades of 
opinion; could work out a program that would 
weld the societies together into one strong work- 
ing body, for common good. It needed someone 
who could stimulate public interest by written 
and spoken messages, and could build up an 
endowment that would insure continuity of 


126 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


effort and provide stability. Fortunately, these 
qualities have been abundantly exemplified in 
Dr. Stillman. They account for the steady 
growth in size, influence and usefulness of The 
American Humane Association. 

The present place of leadership attained by 
The American Humane Association was not 
reached in a night. There were plenty of dis- 
couragements. There was indifference from 
those who should have lent support; provincial- 
ism in humane affairs had to be dealt with tact- 
fully; money had to be raised to meet growing 
demands for literature and office employees; the 
future must be safeguarded by raising a suitable 
endowment; legislation had to be sought and 
means provided for its introduction in State 
Legislatures and, at times, in Congress. Hu- 
mane education needed to be extended by the 
passage of compulsory humane education laws, 
and the creation and distribution of quantities 
of humane literature. The story of the Asso- 
ciation’s growth in these many channels would 
require too much space to tell in detail. Only 
a few of its larger achievements, during Dr. 
Stillman’s administration, can be mentioned. 
Three things were declared by Dr. Stillman as 
essential to the best development of humane 
work in America. They were: (1) A humane 
magazine that could present the humane cause 
as a whole and truly be the mouthpiece of local 


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Doctor William O. Stillman 127 


societies. (2) The service of a humane “ re- 
vivalist ’ and organizer. (3) The creation of a 
training school for humane workers. 

The first office of The American Humane 
Association was equipped with a typewriter 
and some furniture loaned by Dr. Stillman. A 
stenographer was employed, and a broadside of 
letters sent out for society and individual mem- 
bership. As the returns came in, humane liter- 
ature, in ever-increasing volume, was asked for, 
and correspondence with all parts of America 
and with many foreign countries began to grow. 
Additional help was employed. In 1911, Mr. 
Robert H. Murray, of Halifax, was employed for 
a few months to deliver humane lectures in col- 
leges. In December, 1912, Sydney H. Cole- 
man, who had been Manager of the Erie County 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Ani- 
mals, Buffalo, N. Y., for two years, was per- 
manently engaged as Field Secretary. Jan- 
uary, 1913, saw the birth of The National Hu- 
mane Review, with Dr. Stillman as_ editor. 
It is now all that its founder anticipated,— 
the chosen mouthpiece of the anticruelty socie- 
ties of America. It goes to every state in the 
Union and is read in practically every civilized 
country in the world. ‘Through its columns, 
humanitarians are kept in touch with the most 
significant phases of child and animal protection. 

Long before our country entered the war, 


128 Humane Society Leaders in America 


Dr. Stillman began writing regarding the suf- 
fering that American horses were undergoing, 
when purchased and transported by the belliger- 
ents for use on the battlefields of Europe. ‘The 
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to 
Animals, of London, England, had created a 
service early in the war that was proving of 
great aid in reducing the hardships of British 
army animals. The probability that the United 
States would be drawn into the struggle was so 
evident to Dr. Stillman that he proposed to the 
Secretary of War that The American Humane 
Association should provide a similar service for 
the American Army. On May 22, 1916, Secre- 
tary of War Baker accepted the offer and sent 
the following letter to Dr. Stillman: 


WAR DEPARTMENT 


WASHINGTON, 
May 22, 1916. 
Dr. Wituram O. STILLMAN, 
President, The American Humane Association, 
287 State Street, 
Albany, New York. 
Dear Sir: 

The War Department is in receipt of your commu- 
nication offering the services of your Association and 
its five hundred allied societies in organizing and 
maintaining personnel and supplies available to the 
Government in time of war for rendering assistance to 
wounded animals employed by the Army, and appre- 
ciates your offer very much. 

All countries in time of war must depend to a large 


Doctor William O. Stillman 129 


degree on the voluntary assistance of its citizens, and 
especially is this so in the case of the sick and wounded, 
both men and animals. Such voluntary assistance to 
be of the greatest value in war, however, must be or- 
ganized, trained and equipped in time of peace, as only 
in this way can full coordination be maintained be- 
tween the regular and volunteer forces. 

The President in 1911 proclaimed the American 
Red Cross to be the only volunteer society authorized 
to render aid to its land and naval forces in time of 
war, and that other societies desiring to render similar 
assistance could only do so through the American Red 
Cross. ‘This society is at present organizing base hos- 
pital units and other formations, some complete in both 
personnel and equipment, and some composed of per- 
sonnel only. Personnel for these is secured from among 
people trained by reason of civil occupation in the 
duties they would be called upon to perform in time 
of war, and in the event of war each unit, complete, 
would be available for assignment to some prearranged 
station for duty. 

The function of the American Red Cross is to assist 
the Government in caring for the human sick and 
wounded in its armies. The American Humane Asso- 
ciation could very well function in a similar manner in 
assisting the Government in caring for the sick and 
wounded animals in its armies. 

Such assistance would be very gratefully received 
by the War Department, and it is suggested that you 
write to Colonel J. R. Kean, Director General, Depart- 
ment of Military Relief, American Red Cross, Wash- 
ington, D. C., who will inform you in detail as to the 
proposed plans of that society. 

It is believed that plans similar in tenor to those of 
the Red Cross could be very advantageously adopted 
by your Society for rendering organized aid to injured 


) 


130 Humane Society Leaders in America 


animals in time of war, and if your Society will under- 
take this work, the War Department will be very glad 
to cooperate with you. 

Very sincerely, 


(Signed) Newton D. Baker, 
Secretary of War. 

This new and important venture was called 
the American Red Star Animal Relief, after an 
international movement formed for the relief of 
army animals that had been started in Switzer- 
land, in 1914. Dr. Stillman became the Direc- 
tor-General of the organization in the United 
States. Steps were immediately taken to popu- 
larize the work and 125 branches were organized 
throughout the United States. Large sums were 
collected and a satisfactory plan for the distri- 
bution of veterinary supplies was effected. 
Drugs, medicines, bandages and instruments 
were rushed to the cantonments, during the 
early days of the war, at the request of the vet- 
erinarians to meet their needs until they could 
be obtained through the regular government 
channels. Eleven large motor ambulances, each 
capable of carrying two animals, were built in 
England (at the request of the American army 
headquarters) and given to the American Exxpe- 
ditionary Force by the Red Star at a cost of 
more than $60,000. In accepting them, Gen- 
eral Pershing wrote: ‘‘ They will be of great 
service and will be turned over to our Veter- 


Doctor William O. Stillman 181 


inary Corps for its exclusive use.” They proved 
to be a most valuable aid in caring for sick and 
disabled animals and won high praise for the 
Red Star from the Chief Veterinarian. Seven 
other ambulances, motor or horse drawn, were 
furnished army cantonments and camps in this 
country. A two-wheeled horse ambulance, de- 
signed and built by the Red Star, proved so 
popular that the Government constructed a 
large number of them. 

Many of the camps in this country covered 
so much ground that the veterinarians found it 
difficult if not impossible, to look after all of 
the animals in their charge. ‘The Red Star, ac- 
cordingly, purchased four automobiles and ten 
motorcycles, seven of which had sidecars, and 
placed them in various camps for the use of 
army veterinarians. ‘They served a most useful 
purpose and caused camp commanders to write 
warm letters of appreciation to Red Star head- 
quarters. In some instances supply buildings 
were erected at a cantonment. <A First Aid 
booklet for army animals was prepared for the 
Red Star, by an experienced army veterinarian, 
to be distributed gratuitously among the sol- 
diers handling army animals. It was exceed- 
ingly popular. More than 150,000 copies were 
distributed among the soldiers at the request of 
army officers and veterinarians. The American 
Red Star Animal Relief was of great value, not 


1382 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


only in the relief afforded army animals but also 
in the impetus given to animal protection in 
scores of cities in the United States and its pos- 
sessions. Local anticruelty societies were able 
to recruit many new workers among those who 
first had their interest aroused by aiding in the 
development of the Red Star operations. Per- 
mission was granted the Red Star to erect an 
artistic bronze tablet in the War and Navy De- 
partment Building, at Washington, D. C., com- 
memorating the indispensable service rendered 
by the animals lost in the war. It was duly ex- 
ecuted by an able artist and placed in the en- 
trance hall of the great War Department Build- 
ing of the United States, adjoining the White 
House, in Washington, D. C., where it was un- 
veiled by the President’s wife, Mrs. Warren G. 
Harding, and accepted on behalf of the Govern- 
ment by Major General W. A. Holbrook for 
permanent preservation. 

At the close of the war the American Red 
Star Animal Relief turned its attention to the 
problems of animal protection that were too 
large for individual societies to successfully 
handle. For years, humanitarians had been 
greatly concerned with the enormous number of 
cattle and sheep, amounting to more than 
2,000,000 annually, that died on the Western 
ranges from starvation, thirst and exposure. In 
previous years The American Humane Associa- 


Doctor William O. Stillman 133 


tion had given extensive publicity to this fright- 
ful condition. Now, the Red Star again took 
up the task. A careful survey of conditions was 
made by experienced agents and a searching 
publicity campaign was directed against it. 
Thousands of leaflets were distributed among 
the school children of the range states and valu- 
able methods also were suggested for the correc- 
tion of the evil. Conditions have greatly im- 
proved as a result of this campaign. 

The prompt dispatch of a considerable sum 
of money to the Director of the National Park 
Service by the American Red Star Animal Re- 
lef saved thousands of elk, in Yellowstone Park, 
from starvation during the spring of 1920. The 
hay that was bought to supplement the natural 
forage, which lay several feet under the snow, 
preserved a magnificent herd, the largest in 
America, from possible extermination. The 
Red Star stands ready to meet similar crises 
whenever they may arise. 

In the spring of 1919 Mr. Albion E. Lang, 
for a long period a Vice-President and liberal 
supporter of The American Humane Associa- 
tion and a member of the War Council of the 
American Red Star Animal Relief, guaranteed 
$5000 annually to The American Humane As- 
sociation, for a period of five years, for the em- 
ployment of a humane “ revivalist ” and organ- 
izer. Mr. Lang delights in extending a helping 


134 Humane Society Leaders in America 


hand to the better protection of animal life. His 
thorough familiarity with the working plans of 
The American Humane Association convinced 
him that such an organizer could best func- 
tion through it. Mr. R. C. Craven, who had 
skilfully directed the affairs of the Toronto Hu- 
mane Society and who, since the summer of 
1918, had been Publicity Director of the Ameri- 
can Red Star Animal Relief, at its headquarters, 
was selected for the position. It was a difficult 
work, but he has met its problems successfully. 
Thousands of miles of travel have been necessary 
to fill the calls that have come for the services of 
the revivalist from nearly every state in the 
Union. New societies have been organized; 
many old ones have been rejuvenated; large 
numbers of lectures have been given, and thou- 
sands who first have heard of humane work and 
its importance have enlisted under its banner. 
Thus another of Dr. Stillman’s ambitions for 
the movement has been realized. He regards it, 
however, as just a start. He believes that the 
funds will be provided so that not one, but a 
dozen, organizers may be scattered throughout 
the states, and that ultimately missionaries may 
be sent into foreign countries to carry the mes- 
sage of humanity, as is being done in the states. 
In 1910 the First American International 
Humane Conference was held in Washington, 
D. C., under the auspices of The American Hu- 


Doctor William O. Stillman 135 


mane Association. Representatives were pres- 
ent from thirty-two foreign nations or political 
subdivisions, and delegates were present from 
nearly every state. President William H. Taft 
_ served as its first Honorary President. 

Dr. Stillman also was the presiding officer 
at the Second American World Humane Con- 
ference, which was held in New York City on 
October 22-27, 1923. Delegates were appointed 
from thirty nations. ‘There were members and 
delegates from many parts of the United States 
and Canada, as well as from Mexico and South 
America. Nearly every country in Europe was 
represented, including Spain and Turkey. 
There also were representatives present from 
India, China and Japan. It was the largest 
and most successful humane conference hitherto 
held and celebrated the centenary of the passage 
of the first anticruelty law, by a legislative body, 
through the efforts of Mr. Richard Martin, in 
the British Parliament. There was great en- 
thusiasm and the utmost interest was manifested. 

An interesting feature of the Conference was 
the presentation of a gold medal to Dr. Stillman, 
as President of The American Humane Associ- 
ation. ‘The medal was given by the American 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Ani- 
mals. It was composed of virgin gold, with the 
seal of the society presenting it on one side, and 
with the following inscription on the reverse: 


136 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


“ Awarded to Dr. William O. Stillman, Presi- 
dent The American Humane Association, in 
recognition of his distinguished service to the 
cause of animal protection, 1923.” 

Another notable incident of the occasion was 
the presentation to President Stillman of a 
morocco bound book, with his initials in gold on 
the outside. The book contained the text of a 
finely illuminated inscription, on vellum, read- 
ing as follows: “'The Second American World 
Humane Conference and the 47th Annual 
Meeting of 'The American Humane Association, 
in session in New York City, U. S. A., October 
22-27, 1923, present this testimonial of their 
high appreciation of the eminent service, local, 
state, national and international, rendered to the 
cause of humaneness by Dr. William O. Still- 
man. As a prophet and a reformer he has hoped 
and loved and endured; as a humanitarian states- 
man, Dr. W. O. Stillman has instructed, in- 
spired and achieved; as a friend he is true and 
strong and tender. That his bow may long 
abide in strength is the wish of a grateful con- 
stituency.” The book contained, in a special 
pocket, a United States Treasury Bond from his 
many friends as a token of their appreciation 
and affection. 

Humane Sunday and Be Kind to Animals 
Week observances are now very generally held. 
They originated through a resolution passed at 


Doctor William O. Stillman 137 


the 1914 meeting of the Association held in At- 
lantic City. The Presbyterian Church has been 
induced to establish a special humane depart- 
ment in charge of an experienced director, and 
the Protestant Eipiscopal Church and the Bap- 
tist organization have passed resolutions en- 
dorsing the preaching of humane sermons in 
their churches. ‘The Federal Council of 
Churches of Christ in America has also gone on 
record as favoring the humane movement, while 
other religious bodies have likewise passed simi- 
lar resolutions. 

As a further means of popularizing humane 
work the Association originated annual national 
humane poster and essay contests. These have 
been widely observed by hundreds of thousands 
of school children and have resulted in the first 
original art work ever available for anticruelty 
propaganda. The missionary value of these 
posters and essays has been very great. 

Few persons, except those coming in the 
closest touch with Dr. Stillman, have realized at 
how great a sacrifice he has indefatigably con- 
ducted his local and national humane work. His 
professional skill quickly gave him a large clien- 
tele, sufficient to engage all of his waking hours. 
He enjoyed the opportunity of befriending the 
poor. There stretched before him a career of 
usefulness, strictly within his profession, that 
would have made him a wealthy man. It offered 
him the means for travel, art and literature. He 


138 Humane Society Leaders in America 


loved them all passionately. His vision of com- 
munity service, however, was bigger than his 
personal pleasure. He preferred to become a 
public benefactor with its resultant discourage- 
ments, its sacrifices, but likewise its attendant 
satisfaction of having achieved something big- 
ger than professional glory or financial reward. 

The first offices of the local and the national 
humane movements were given space in his own 
home until they could afford quarters of their 
own. He still maintains his personal offices at 
his house, to which stenographers and clerks go 
daily. His daily humane schedule gradually 
came to take up more and more of his time until 
his professional work was necessarily contracted. 
His humane work day starts at eight-thirty in 
the morning and continues uninterruptedly 
until twelve or one. In the afternoon he like- 
wise finds time for humane conferences. In the 
evening he spends from eight until ten o’clock, 
frequently until midnight, working out humane 
_ plans, going over his correspondence and solving 
the problems presented by local societies. So 
exacting and heavy has this become that he 
rarely takes a holiday and never enjoys a full 
twenty-four hours on his beautiful country place 
along the Hudson, that fairly teems with animal 
life and which he loves and admires. His dogs, 
his horses and his poultry, of many kinds, are 
all objects of his interest and concern. 

Few men are more closely in touch with the 


Doctor William O. Stillman 139 


world events or the latest in books, but his 
familiarity with them is gleaned by employing a 
secretary to read to him at meal times. No 
moment is lost. He has always at hand reading 
matter to refresh and stimulate him to greater 
activity if perchance a breathing spell occurs in 
his daily routine. | 

He has many hobbies which contribute to his 
enjoyment and relaxation. Reference has been 
made to his historical research. He has acquired 
a wonderful library, which includes many rare 
volumes. His studies of painting, architecture 
and sculpture are extensive. He has wonderful 
collections of curios drawn from all parts of the 
world. Until within the past few years he de- 
lighted in his driving horses, which are now pen- 
* gioned on his farm. He is an ardent motorist, 
but will not permit himself to take extended 
trips because of office duties. 

From the founding of The Convention of 
Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty in New 
York State, he has been active in its counsels, 
serving it for nineteen years as a Vice-Presi- 
dent, and now as its President. In 1914 he was 
elected President of the International Federa- 
tion of Societies for Animal Protection at a 
meeting held in London. For nine years he was 
Chairman of the New York State Humane 
Education Committee. He has been active in 
securing state humane legislation and has fre- 
quently gone to Washington in behalf of Hed- 


140 Humane Society Leaders in America 


eral laws. Among other honors and activities 
are: Physician to Open Door Mission and 
Hospital for Incurables, 1887-8; Babies’ Nur- 
sery and Lathrop Memorial, 1888-92; Home for 
Christian Workers since 1892, etc.; lecturer on 
history of medicine, Albany Medical College, 
1896-1914; awarded gold medal at St. Louis 
Exposition, 1904, for philanthropic services; 
silver medal, Ohio Humane Society; gold medal, 
San Francisco Society for Prevention of Cru- 
elty to Animals; honorary member of Finland, 
two Italian, Argentina and Cologne (Ger- 
many) societies for prevention of cruelty to ani- 
mals, Federated Humane Societies of Pennsyl- 
vania, Michigan State Humane Association: 
Honorary Vice-President of Audubon Society 
of State of New York, President New York 
State Historical Society, member of American 
Peace Society, New York Peace Society, Amer- 
ican Association for the Advancement of Sci- 
ence, American Academy of Political and 
Social Science, American Geological Society, 
etc. 

The contributions he has made to the humane 
movement are sufficient to entitle him to a big 
place among the worthy reformers, but he has 
found other avenues of service. In 1905 he 
founded a short term training course for women 
who desire to be nurses and give scientific care 
to the sick at prices within the reach of the poor. 
Large classes are sent into service each year to 


Doctor William O. Stillman 141 


carry on their good Samaritan labor. He antic- 
ipates the development of a “ Poor Man’s Hos- 
pital,” before he must cease his activities, that 
will place modern hospital conveniences within 
the reach of all who need them. 

Those who have heard him speak or have 
read any of his numerous writings are familiar 
with his polished and terse style. His knowledge 
is exact and covers a wide range of subjects. 
His word pictures have won many converts to 
the humane cause, an ever growing circle of 
readers who recognize his strength of purpose 
and soul greatness. He is an admirable presid- 
ing officer and his fund of ready wit has saved 
many tense situations and much personal bitter- 
ness. 

Probably no living humanitarian has a larger 
acquaintance or warmer personal friends, in this 
country and abroad, than Dr. Stillman. Men 
and women are drawn under his influence by his 
magnetic personality. He commands confidence 
by his sane judgment and well executed pro- 
grams. ‘The genial smile, the apt phrase, the 
appreciative word are always ready to lift up 
the discouraged and spur others on to greater 
achievements. 

Among those who have been closely associ- 
ated with Dr. Stillman, none has served longer 
or more efficiently than Nathaniel J. Walker. 
He entered the employ of The Mohawk & Hud- 
son River Humane Society as a young man. Dr. 


142 Humane Society Leaders in America 


Stillman recognized his admirable qualifications 
and made him Superintendent of The Mohawk 
& Hudson River Humane Society. He has been 
connected with the society nearly thirty years, 
at first as a clerk, then as Superintendent and 
later as Secretary. He finally became General 
Manager. He also became associated with his 
chief as Secretary and Legislative Agent of The 
Convention of Societies for the Prevention of 
Cruelty in New York State, and has been Sec- 
retary of The American Humane Association 
since 1908. To these varied positions, Mr. Walk- 
er has brought abilities of a very high order. 
He is an excellent speaker, and has addressed ac- 
ceptably many assemblies. He has also written 
valuable papers on humane topics, which have 
been presented at national Conventions and 
have been printed and widely distributed, owing 
to the demand created by their intrinsic merit. 
As an executive officer he has few equals, and 
directs many subordinates. Although not an 
attorney, for years he has been trying cases be- 
fore the courts, and has won a great percentage 
of convictions while seeking redress for his hu- 
mane clients. This has been done by his knowl- 
edge of law, and by his skill, tact and persua- 
siveness. He has shown admirable judgment in 
handling the many cases brought before him, 
and has exhibited a humane sympathy and inter- 
est which made his work greatly respected and 
admired wherever it has been known. 


CHAPTER VI 


MEN PROMINENT AS LOCAL 
HUMANE LEADERS IN THE 
UNITED STATES 


ONDITIONS in America were ripe for 
humane expansion in 1866. It simply 
needed the galvanic action of Henry 

Bergh, in New York, to electrify a score of 
cities. Men and women of influence, in their 
respective communities, had been stirred deeply 
by the daily cruelties enacted upon their streets 
but had felt their helplessness in dealing with 
them. The story of The American Society for 
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was told 
in newspapers widely scattered. Sometimes it 
was treated as a huge comedy; at other times 
sympathetically. The results were the same. 
A solution was offered for a long standing 
curse. ‘The path had been blazed. It now 
needed but the perpetration of some glaring case 
of brutality or a little encouragement from the 
right source, to insure the organization of a 
society in large cities everywhere. 

In the course of more than fifty years there 
have arisen hundreds of workers whose unstinted 

143 


144 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


labor and self-sacrificing spirit entitle them to a 
large place in the affection of humanitarians. 
Were an attempt made only to list these devoted 
and pioneer souls, it would require a volume. 
Some day such a compilation undoubtedly will 
be made. In this chapter only a few names can 
be included. They have been selected not neces- 
sarily because they served more than others, but 
because their contribution marked an era or 
some significant advance in humanitarian pro- 
gress. 

Philadelphia was the first city after New 
York to take action in behalf of animal protec- 
tion. Mr. M. Richards Mucklé, then manager 
of the Philadelphia Ledger, had viewed with 
heavy heart the acts of cruelty that took place 
daily in the street in front of his office window. 
An account of Mr. Bergh’s work had come to 
his attention and he determined that a similar 
program was required in Philadelphia. On 
April 28th, 1866, he caused a notice to be inserted 
in the Bulletin, in which he asked those inter- 
ested in the formation of such a society to com- 
municate with him. A few of Mr. Mucklé’s 
personal friends became aroused and a meeting 
was called for May 6, 1867, to consider prelim- 
inary plans. Mr. Bergh was invited to attend, 
but the press of local affairs prevented his ac- 
ceptance. He did write, however, most encour- 
agingly, and closed his letter by saying: “TI 








CoLoneL. M. RicHarDS MUCKLE 


President, Pennsylvania Society tor the Prevention 
of Cruelty to Animals, 1896 to 1915 


Local Humane Leaders 145 


would not exchange places with the President 
of the United States if by so doing I were here- 
after to be barred from further service in this 
most beneficent cause.” ‘The meeting was held 
and plans made for a subsequent one. 

It is most interesting that Mrs. Caroline 
‘Earle White, of revered memory, should have 
been working on a similar project during 1866 
and 1867. From the time of her marriage to 
Richard White, a prominent Philadelphia law- 
yer, who came from Ireland and had told her of 
the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 
to Animals, she had hoped for such a society 
in America. In the summer of 1866 she had 
called on Henry Bergh, in New York, and at his 
suggestion had returned home to enlist support 
for such a society. Both she and Mr. White had 
circulated petitions and secured many signatures 
of prominent people advocating the formation of 
a society for the prevention of cruelty to animals. 
She had not seen Mr. Mucklé’s call and only 
heard of his activities through correspondence 
with Mr. Bergh. On learning what he was doing 
she called upon him and offered her assistance, 
which was gratefully received. 

On June 21, 1867, another meeting was called, 
at which the Pennsylvania Society for the Pre- 
vention of Cruelty to Animals was instituted. The 
following Spring, April 4, 1868, the Pennsylva- 
nia legislature granted it a charter with state- 


Io 


146 Humane Society Leaders in America 


wide jurisdiction, which had been drawn by Mr. 
Mucklé. Dr. Wilson C. Swan was elected Pres- 
ident and served one year. Several very promi- 
nent Philadelphians were elected to the Board 
of Managers, including Mr. White. Neither 
Mrs. White nor any other woman was given an 
elective place in the management, for at that 
time women were not commonly accorded such 
distinction. Mr. Morris S. Waln, who became 
the society’s second President, gave the new 
movement a great impetus by a gift of $6000. 
During the Presidency of Mr. Waln, he sug- 
gested that a “Women’s Branch” be insti- 
tuted. This was done April 14, 1869, with Mrs. 
White as its President. Her work will be 
traced in another chapter. 

From the first Col. Mucklé took a leading 
part in the development and guidance of the 
society, but refused repeatedly to accept the 
presidency, preferring to work in the ranks. The 
position was held for several years by prominent 
gentlemen, including Robert W. Ryerss, who 
became the society’s chief benefactor and whose 
wife left funds for the development of the notable 
Ryerss Infirmary for Dumb Animals. Mr. 
Ryerss was President from 1885 until his death 
in 1896. At that time the friends of Col. Mucklé 
persuaded him to accept the position of Presi- 
dent. During the balance of his life he devoted 
himself very largely to the affairs of the society. 


Local Humane Leaders 147 


Scarcely a day passed but found him at his desk, 
looking after its detail operations and wisely 
planning for its future when he must entrust the 
work to others. 

Col. M. Richards Mucklé was born in Phila- 
delphia, September 10, 1825, and died there in 
1915. After securing an education in the pub- 
lic schools he entered the office of the Public 
Ledger. By dint of hard work and application, 
he was advanced to the rank of general mana- 
ger, a position he held for many years. During 
the Mexican war he was offered a second lieu- 
tenancy. In 1853 he was appointed on the staff 
of the Governor of Pennsylvania, with the title 
of Colonel. His ability as a public speaker 
caused him to be in demand and brought him 
prominently before the people. He was among 
the first to suggest and advocate the Centennial 
Exposition which was held in Philadelphia, in 
1876. Col. Mucklé’s faculty for organizing was 
of great service to the Pennsylvania Society for 
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals from its 
very first days. Before the charter was even 
granted, he caused an agent to be employed to 
begin constructive work. He insisted on a sound 
financial policy which has proven a bulwark of 
strength during the entire history of the society. 
Probably no society for animal protection in 
America has its future more securely guaran- 
teed than the one he served for so long a period. 


148 Humane Society Leaders in America 


All through a long and busy life Col. Mucklé 
found opportunity to assist many worthy philan- 
thropies, but of them all he cherished and loved 
best the society which cared for dumb beasts. 

Fortunately for the welfare of the society, 
Mr. J. Gibson MclIlvain, Jr., was selected, in 
1916, to succeed him. Since 1906 Mr. Mellvain 
had been a manager of the society and thus ab- 
sorbed the viewpoint of Col. Mucklé and came 
to know the many different sides to the move- 
ment. More than that, he was a man of large 
business interests whose presence on the board 
of control of any philanthropic work would add 
prestige to its standing in the city and state. His 
interest in the society has never waned. 

More than thirty years ago Frank B. Ruther- 
ford secured a position with the Pennsylvania 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Ani- 
mals as a complaint clerk. Later he was ad- 
vanced to the position of Operative Manager, 
which was created for him, and William T. Phil- 
lips was advanced to the place of Secretary. The 
administrative duties of this large organization 
rest mainly in the hands of Mr. Rutherford. He 
-has proven himself ingenious in discovering im- 
proved methods for handling anticruelty work. 
He was the first to introduce the electric horse 
ambulance and many other appliances now 
generally accepted as essential for successful 
humane management. Under his direction the 


Local Humane Leaders 149 


society has grown to large proportions. In 
1917, it dedicated a beautiful building at 922- 
924 North Broad street, Philadelphia, which is 
in every way well suited to house a highly de- 
veloped anticruelty society. It owns two elec- 
tric driven and a gasoline motor horse ambu- 
lance and operates a number of runabouts for 
agents to patrol the streets. Since the society’s 
inception in 1867 to January 1, 1921, its agents 
handled 1,192,203 cases of cruelty and 17,826 
prosecutions. Mr. Rutherford has done much to 
advance anticruelty work through the state. He 
helped to organize the Federated Humane Socie- 
ties of Pennsylvania, of which he was at one 
time the President. He has originated much 
humane legislation, including the “old, horse 
bill ” which regulates the sale of worn-out horses 
and the law governing the working hours of the 
horse. Mr. Rutherford is an officer of The 
American, Humane Association and takes an 
active part in its annual meetings. He was also 
a member of the Executive Committee of the 
American Red Star Animal Relief and has been 
Associate Editor of The National Humane Re- 
view from its first issue. 

The Auxiliary to the Pennsylvania Society 
for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is com- 
posed of a group of able women who conduct 
some of the special work now commonly handled 
by animal protective societies. It maintains a 


150 Humane Society Leaders in America 


large number of drinking stations for horses, 
and two motor water carts that provide water to 
the horses in the heavy teaming districts, where 
other watering facilities are not available. It 
also has a gravel car, from which tons of gravel 
are sprinkled on the streets when pavements are 
slippery. ‘The Auxiliary also holds an annual 
Horse Tag Day and a large work horse parade. 
The supervision of the work of the Auxiliary is 
in the hands of Mr. John F'.. Cozens, who has 
been engaged in humane work for more than 
twenty-five years. He originated the watering 
station idea and perfected the horse watering 
car. He was also the founder of National Horse 
Day. 

The records of the Illinois Humane Society 
state that on March 25, 1869, the Illinois Soci- 
ety for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals 
secured its charter from the state of Illinois. 
Mr. Edwin Lee Brown was elected the first 
President of the society and held that office from 
1869 to 1873. The outrageous conditions pre- 
vailing in the stock yards had been the outstand- 
ing evil that impressed the six founders with the 
need for such a society. Until 1877 it largely 
confined itself to fighting the cruelty which it 
found there. In the autobiography of George 
T. Angell he tells of a visit made to Chicago, in 
the fall of 1870, at the request of Hon. John C. 
Dore, who later was the President of the Illinois 


Local Humane Leaders 151 


Society from 1873 to 1875. Mr. Angell re- 
mained six months in Chicago at a heavy ex- 
pense to himself, but before he left he succeeded 
in arousing considerable public interest by ar- 
ticles in the papers and through a mass meeting. 
Mr. Edwin Lee Brown was a man of construc- 
tive ability and a warm friend of animal protec- 
tion. He became widely known to humanitar- 
ians a few years later when he was elected first 
President of The American Humane Associa- 
tion. The transportation of live stock was at 
that time a source of great abuse. Mr. Brown 
had seen it in all of its worst phases as the ship- 
ments came into Chicago. He was accordingly 
looked to for advice and help to solve the prob- 
lems involved. He was President of the Asso- 
ciation from 1877 to 1884, and again from 1888 
to 1890. | 

In 1877 Mr. John G. Shortall was elected 
President of the Illinois society. He had been 
associated with the group of men who organized 
the society, although he was not listed as one of 
the founders, in the article “ Reminiscences ” ap- 
pearing in the Humane Advocate for May, 1906. 
He was, however, one of its original directors, 
and it is around his work as President, from 
1877 to 1906, that much of its most important 
history is written. The work that was being 
done in New York by the society for the preven- 
tion of cruelty to children attracted his atten- 


152 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


tion in 1877, and led him to extend the scope of 
his own organization to include children as well 
as animals. The title of the society was then 
changed to the Illinois Humane Society. It was 
the first society in the world to do a joint work 
for children and animals and the first to use the 
name humane. Since then it has been applied 
practically to all societies performing a dual 
work. The first legislation for children in [h- 
nois was secured the same year. 

Mr. Shortall was a nationally known figure 
in humane circles. He was a lawyer with a most 
genial and sympathetic nature, who was born in 
Dublin, Ireland, September 30, 1837, and 
brought to America in his early youth. As a 
man of twenty he came to Chicago, where he 
studied law and was admitted to the bar. Shortly 
before the great fire of 1871, he became the 
owner of extensive real estate abstracts, which 
later acquired exceptional value when the public 
records were burned. He died July 23, 1908. It 
was a call signed and sent out by him that 
brought into being The American Humane As- 
sociation. Throughout his life he devoted a good 
deal of attention to the progress and develop- 
ment of the Association and was its President in 
1884 and later from 1893 to 1898. He had the 
satisfaction of seeing his local society expand by 
developing branches in various cities in the state 
of Illinois. The society was among the earliest 


Local Humane Leaders 153 


to use the horse ambulance for the removal of 
sick and disabled animals. He was the leading 
spirit and one of the donors in acquiring the fine 
headquarters building at 1145 South Wabash 
avenue, Chicago. 

Band of Mercy work and the erection of 
horse drinking fountains were early made prom- 
inent features of the society’s activities. In 1893 
the society, in conjunction with The American 
Humane Association, conducted a humane ex- 
hibit at the World’s Fair. The same year The 
American Humane Association held its annual 
meeting in Chicago and joined in an Interna- 
tional Congress of Humane Workers. It was 
presided over by Mr. Shortall. 

In 1906 Mr. Shortall gave up his public ac- 
tivities and was succeeded in the presidency of 
the Illinois Society by his son, John L. Shortall, 
who, with the exception of one year, continued 
in office until 1918. He enlarged the work 
started by his distinguished father. His most 
conspicuous service was the inauguration in 1907 
of a course of lectures on humane work, held in 
the society’s building. The lectures for drivers 
were especially popular and were continued for 
a number of years. He continues most active 
in the affairs of the society as a member of the 
Executive Committee and its Vice-President. 
He is likewise closely connected with The Ameri- 
can Humane Association, of which he was Direc- 


154 Humane Society Leaders in America 


tor and Vice-President for a long period. Mr. 
Shortall is a successful lawyer and associated 
with many important business interests in his 
home city. ) 

- The administrative officer of the Illinois 
Society, since 1906, has been George A. H. 
Scott. His legal training has been of great as- 
sistance in conducting the affairs of the society. 
Both child and animal protection have been en- 
ergetically handled by Mr. Scott, who has made 
a most thorough study of the transportation of 
live poultry and is an authority on the subject. 
He has been active in securing humane legisla- 
tion in Illinois. At various times he has pre- 
pared important papers for the annual meetings 
of The American Humane Association. His 
summary of humane legislation which appeared 
in The National Humane Review was the most 
complete that has been made. He is a faithful 
attendant at annual meetings of the Association 
and is a director. He is a humanitarian of great 
ability and devotion, always to be relied on. 

The Humane Advocate was launched in 1905 
as the official magazine of The Illinois Humane 
Society. It was published monthly until quite 
recently under the editorship of Miss Ruth 
Ewing. It now appears at irregular periods. 
In order to establish closer relations between 
the humanitarians of the state, the society took 
the lead in calling a State Humane Convention 


Local Humane Leaders 155 


in 1908. It has been of great use to the cause. 
Mr. Solomon Sturges is now President of the 
society. 

The San Francisco Society for the Preven- 
tion of Cruelty to Animals, of San Francisco, 
Cal., is said to owe its origin to the squealing 
of a pig. Back in the Spring of 1868, a pig 
escaped from a drove on the San Francisco 
waterfront. Its shrill squealing, caused by the 
brutal way in which two vaqueros attempted to 
recapture it, brought Mr. J. S. Hutchinson into 
the street to stop the outrage. He had heard of 
the work being done by Henry Bergh across the 
continent and he resolved that San Francisco 
should have a society that could prevent such 
scenes as he had just witnessed. The organiza- 
tion was soon perfected and Mr. Hutchinson be- 
came the first treasurer of the society, a position 
he filled until his death in 1919. His son has been 
elected to succeed him. 

In 1883 Mr. John Partridge took out a mem- 
bership in the San Francisco Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. He was not 
content to be simply a passive member. His at- 
tention was called to the dog pound, where the 
most cruel methods were employed in handling 
the dogs that were brought there for disposal. 
He resolved that the work should be transferred 
to the society and began a long fight to this end, 
which ultimately resulted in success. In recog- 


156 Humane Society Leaders in America 


nition of his services, he was elected President of 
the society in 1903. The same zeal that marked 
his first struggle to secure justice to animals has 
followed his long official record. He gives close 
attention to the detail work of the organization, 
and may view its praiseworthy career with no 
little personal pride. Mr. Partridge is a direc- 
tor of The American Humane Association. His 
advice and suggestions have been of great use to 
the national movement. He was one of the 
founders and the first President of the Califor- 
nia State Humane Association, formed in 1909, 
to free the state from the curse of fake anti- 
cruelty organizations and also aid in securing de- 
sirable humane legislation. ‘The splendid quar- 
ters of the society, its large and small animal 
ambulances, and its sound financial position are 
due in a large measure to Mr. Partridge’s excep- 
tional executive ability. 

In all that the San Francisco Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has done since 
1895, Mr. Matthew McCurrie, its Secretary, has 
taken an important part. As an administrative 
officer of an animal protective society he has few 
equals. He knows the work in its minutest de- 
tails and has developed many progressive ideas 
which have been passed on to sister societies. 
When the society began its excellent monthly 
magazine Our Animals, in 1911, he became its 
editor. Year by year the literary and artistic 


Local Humane Leaders 157 


qualities of this publication have improved until 
it ranks with the best in its class. At the Pan- 
ama-Pacific Exposition, held in San Francisco in 
1915, his society had its own building, in which 
was housed a valuable exhibit of humane mate- 
rial and devices. When the State Humane Asso- 
ciation was formed, he became its Secretary, and 
ever since has been one of its leading figures. 
Frequently he has travelled long distances to 
be present at the annual meetings of The Ameri- 
can Humane Association, where he is always a 
prominent figure. His practical knowledge, his 
genial nature, and his typical good sense are 
qualities that have earned for him a host of 
friends in all parts of the United States. 

The second Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Children was organized in Rochester, 
N. Y., October 6, 1875, only a few months after 
the New York Society had begun its epoch- 
making work. It has had a long and honorable 
history. During the past decade it has made 
unusual progress and owns a well equipped head- 
quarters building and children’s shelter. No lit- 
tle credit for its success is due its President for 
many years, Hon. George A. Carnahan, and its 
efficient Superintendent, Mr. Richard S. Red- 
fern, who recently resigned, and has been suc- 
ceeded by Whitcomb H. Allen. 

Reference has been made elsewhere to the or- 
ganization of societies for the prevention of cru- 


158 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


elty to children through the stir made in distant 
cities by agents of the New York society in fer- 
reting out evidence to complete some of its cases. 
The California Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Children, of San Francisco, was one 
of these. It was accomplished, through the sen- 
sational rescue from a circus of little Harry Mc- 
Cabe, an eight year old acrobat, by Col. Charles 
Sonntag, at the request of the New York soci- 
ety. He was so moved by the usefulness of such 
an organization that he called together some of 
his friends and brought about the incorporation 
of the California Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Children, in August, 1876. Col. 
Sonntag served the society as President for six- 
teen years, resigning in favor of Mr. EK. W. New- 
hall, whose father and uncle were among the in- 
corporators. Mr. Newhall became associated 
with the society in the early eighties, as did his 
brother George A., who had been treasurer for 
more than thirty years and was for a time its 
President. Mr. EK. W. Newhall assumed the 
position of President in 1903 and continued in 
office until a short time before his death in 1915. 
He was an active worker in the California State 
Humane Association and aided materially in the 
organization and development of the children’s 
court in his state. For a number of years he was 
active in the affairs of The American Humane 
Association. Mr. Newhall’s place in the Cali- 


Local Humane Leaders 159 


fornia Society has been filled by his son, Almer 
M. Newhall. As far as can be learned no other 
anticruelty society in the United States has the 
unique distinction of having had three genera- 
tions of one family sufficiently interested to as- 
sume the burdens involved in its active manage- 
ment. ‘The practical work has been for years 
under the able management of Secretary M. J. 
White, who is familiar with every phase of child 
protection work. Mr. White is well known in 
California for his progressive methods. He has 
been an Associate Editor of The National Hu- 
mane Review since its initial number, and is un- 
tiring in his devotion to his society. 

Child protection was started in Brooklyn in 
1880, through the efforts of Mr. Henry R. Jones, 
who was elected first President of the Brooklyn 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Chil- 
dren. For thirty-three years he devoted nearly all 
of his time to the development of the society. 
When failing health caused him to resign he was 
made President Emeritus. He died in 1916. 
The active force in charge of the very large work 
of this society for several years was Arthur W. 
Towne, who became its Superintendent in 1913. 
Mr. Towne broadened the scope of the society’s 
activities, and was very active in its work. He 
was succeeded by Mr. Chas. H. Warner, in 1922, 
who has long been associated with child protec- 
tion work in New York State. He has the back- 


160 Humane Society Leaders in America 


ground of several years of social work and a legal 
training which helps him to meet the problems 
of his society with broad vision. From 1914 to 
1919 he was Secretary of the Convention of Soci- 
eties for the Prevention of Cruelty in New York 
State. 

The Rhode Island Society for the Prevention 
of Cruelty to Children, of Providence, is among 
the oldest of its kind. Since 1905 it has been 
under the management of its able Secretary, 
Thomas B. Maymon. Unusual conditions have 
compelled the society to assume many functions 
not ordinarily handled by such organizations. 
Mr. Maymon has the true vision of the child pro- 
tectionist and, by the quality of its work, has 
placed his society among the foremost social 
agencies of his state. 

The late John A. Blaffer, of New Orleans, | 
La., was one of the charter members of the 
Louisiana Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 
to Children, in 1892. He was one of its most 
active supporters and helped to make it the larg- 
est society of its kind in the South. In 1902 he 
was elected President of the society and served 
until 1918, when failing health caused him to re- 
sign. He took a deep interest in The American 
Humane Association and was one of its direc- 
tors. Mr. Tudor B. Carre is now President of 
the society and has helped to carry it successfully 
through trying experiences. 





Mrs. CAROLINE EARLE WHITE 


Founder and President of the Women’s Pennsylvania 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to 
Animals, 1869 to 1916 





Local Humane Leaders 161 


Hon. Robert J. Wilkin, Judge of the Brook- 
lyn Children’s Court, once said that the first 
time he saw the sign of the New York Society 
for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children he 
laughed at the apparent futility of such an or- 
ganization, little realizing that within a brief 
time he was to become intimately associated 
with it. When the Brooklyn Society for the Pre- 
vention of Cruelty to Children was organized he 
was appointed its Superintendent and retained 
that position until he was elevated to the Bench 
of the Children’s Court in 1903. Judge Wilkin 
has made an enviable reputation for his court. 
He understands children and realizes the under- 
lying causes that bring them before him. Prob- 
ably few are better known than he among those 
engaged in child protection work. He has 
framed many of the laws of New York that 
apply to children. His papers on various angles 
of child protection have been highly valued at 
the annual meetings of The American Humane 
Association, of which he was long a director. 
From the origin of the Convention of Societies 
for the Prevention of Cruelty in New York he 
has been most active in its work. He was its Sec- 
retary from 1890 to 1903, when he was elected 
President to replace Hon. Elbridge T. Gerry, 
who had resigned that position. In 1913 Judge 
Wilkin resigned and was made Chairman of the 
Executive Committee. He is a humanitarian 


iM 


162 Humane Society Leaders in America 


from conviction, whose labor has been of great 
value in the development of humane sentiment 
in behalf of children. 

The Connecticut Humane Society, of Hart- 
ford, Conn., is a product of the missionary 
labors of George T. Angell. It was incorpo- 
rated in 1881 and gives attention to abandoned 
old people, certain phases of children’s problems 
and the prevention of cruelty to animals. From 
1899 to the time of his death in 1918, Rev. Wm. 
DeLoss Love, Ph. D., was its President and 
guiding force. In 1919 the society secured the 
services of Mr. H. Clay Preston as General 
Manager. It was a wise selection. Almost im- 
mediately he began to find new avenues of use- 
fulness for the society. The work in Hartford 
was increased; the old headquarters were sold to 
advantage and a fine new site with excellent 
buildings was secured. Work throughout the 
state is being strengthened by the development 
of local organizations. Few workers in the whole 
movement were better equipped by training and 
personality than Mr. Preston to develop this 
large field. He began his anticruelty career in 
Binghamton, N. Y., with a society dealing only 
with animal protection. Soon child protection 
was added to its functions. His success led to 
his appointment as Superintendent of the 
Brooklyn Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 
to Children, where he added new laurels for effi- 


Local Humane Leaders 163 


ciency and executive ability. In 1913 he re- 
signed, and later accepted the General Manager- 
ship of the Erie County Society for the Preven- 
tion of Cruelty to Animals, in Buffalo. While 
he was in its employ the society erected a modern 
headquarters building and hospital. From 1904 
to 1914 he was Secretary of the Convention of 
Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty in New 
York State. He has likewise taken an active 
part in national humane work and has presented 
many able papers at the annual meetings of The 
American Humane Association, of which he is a 
director. Mr. Preston’s contribution to the 
humane cause is a large one. 

Humane work in the state of Oregon has 
broadened out of late years. The headquarters 
of the Oregon Humane Society are located at 
Portland, with Col. EK. Hofer as President and 
Mrs. F. W. Swanton as general manager. Col. 
Hofer is known as a publicist in the western 
coast states, and as a man of affairs, particularly 
in his own state. Mrs. Swanton is thoroughly 
efficient, and as the result of the intensive labors 
of herself and Col. Hofer the society occupies an 
enviable position in public esteem. The work is 
state-wide, and it is of such value that it has been 
accorded a considerable financial appropriation 
by the state. One of its achievements has been 
to cut down the losses of range stock due to ex- 
posure and starvation. Hon. Robert Tucker, of 


164 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


Portland, Judge of the Circuit Court of Oregon, 
has been a loyal friend of the Oregon Humane 
Society. He served as President until his judi- 
cial duties prevented. ‘The American Humane 
Association enjoyed his advice as one of its 
directors. For several years Mr. Joseph E. 
Rudersdorf was the manager of this society but 
he resigned his position to resume his connection 
with the Spokane Humane Society that had 
prospered under his management. Mr. Charles 
M. Farrer, President of the King County Hu- 
mane Society, of Seattle, Washington, has 
shown great interest in the work and labored 
zealously in its behalf. Mr. L. V. McWhorter is 
another citizen of the State of Washington, con- 
nected with the Yakima County Humane So- 
ciety, who has done conscientious work. 

When Mr. Huntington Smith, of Boston, 
Mass., perfected his electric cages for the hu- 
mane destruction of small animals, in 1911, he 
did much to lessen the suffering of small ani- 
mals that must be destroyed. ‘The cages are the 
result of much experimental work and have re- 
placed the lethal chambers of many anticruelty 
societies. Mr. Smith was the Managing Direc- 
tor of the Animal Rescue League of Boston, 
which was founded by his wife. Before entering 
his present field of usefulness he was a success- 
ful publisher, and has written extensively on 
many subjects. Another Boston humanitarian, 


ae) 

ob 

hon 
"i 


ve Dor 
7 












Mrs. Mary F. LovELL 


Secretary, Women’s Pennsylvania Society tor the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals 


Local Humane Leaders 165 


who has accomplished much for the humane 
cause through the development of work horse 
parades, is Mr. Henry C. Merwin. His valu- 
able work is referred to elsewhere. 

The Rhode Island Society for the Prevention 
of Cruelty to Animals, of which the Hon. Addi- 
son P. Munroe is President, owes much to Mr. 
James N. Smith, who has been with it since 1889. 
He became General Agent in 1895 and was 
among the first to utilize the automobile for the 
investigation of country cases. ‘The society has 
built up a large endowment fund. Col. F. E. 
Boothby, now deceased, was a prominent figure 
with the Maine State Society for the Protection 
of Animals, of Portland, Me. In Lowell, Mass., 
Mr. Charles F. Richardson is a most successful 
agent of the Lowell Humane Society. He has 
been in charge since 1898. 

Among the oldest humane officers, in the 
point of service, is Mr. Thomas S. Carlisle, the 
efficient Superintendent of the Women’s Penn- 
sylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 
to Animals, of Philadelphia. He made a num- 
ber of extensive surveys for his society, and later 
for The American Humane Association, on the 
transportation of live stock. In Washington, 
D. C., Mr. John P. Heap has done much to rid 
that city of abuse to animals, and has been con- 
nected with the work for many years. 

Binghamton, N. Y., has accomplished splen- 


166 Humane Society Leaders in America 


did things for the humane cause. The President 
of the Broome County Humane Society and Re- 
lief Association is Mr. Z. Bennett Phelps, who 
helped reorganize the society in 1900. He was 
also President of the state humane organization 
for a term. The Superintendent, Mr. S. J. 
Koerbel, is exceedingly active and an able 
worker. Practically all of the charitable work 
of the city is now in his hands. The society 
raises a budget of more than $50,000 a year. 

The prosperous condition of the Rochester 
Humane Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 
to Animals, of Rochester, N. Y., was largely 
due to the untiring efforts of the late J. B. Y. 
Warner, who was long its President. He was 
a great advocate of humane education and de- 
veloped it extensively in the public schools. He 
had an able lieutenant in Mr. Frederick L. 
Dutcher, who followed Mr. Warner as Presi- 
dent. He was a Director of The American Hu- 
mane Association and was elected to the Judicial 
bench. Judge Dutcher was succeeded by Dr. 
W. V. Ewers as President of the society. He is 
a sincere friend of the cause. 

A number of men have accomplished much 
for animal protection in the South. Among these 
are Mr. W. F. Crall, of Norfolk, Va.; Mr. Max 
Myerson, of Jacksonville, Fla.; Col. George 
McC. Derby, of New Orleans, La., and Col. 
Joseph F. Burke at Atlanta, Ga. Mr. Peter P. 


Local Humane Leaders 167 


Gluck, of New Orleans, has been active in behalf 
of the Louisiana State S. P. C. A. Mr. Henry 
EF’, Lewith, of Charleston, S.C., has worked alone 
but has a great deal to show for his labor. He 
is an enthusiastic animal lover and coined the 
phrase “ Be Kind to Animals,” and conceived 
the idea of “ Be Kind to Animals Week.” He 
also induced the Charleston American to publish 
a very large Be Kind to Animals Week supple- 
ment, in 1919. Mr. Lewith furnished the copy 
for a twenty-four page edition. It was the first 
venture of its kind and the largest newspaper 
edition devoted exclusively to anticruelty work 
ever published. He has produced a similar num- 
ber every year since and deserves great credit. 
The Western Pennsylvania Humane Soci- 
ety, of Pittsburgh, Pa:, was founded through the 
efforts of Mrs. Caroline Karle White, President 
of the Women’s Pennsylvania Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, of Philadel- 
phia. The first effort, in 1871, was only par- 
tially successful, but was followed up in a few 
years, and a permanent organization effected. 
In the beginning the society confined its atten- 
tion to the protection of animals, but later en- 
larged its field to include children. In 1916, Mr. 
H. Lee Mason, Jr., was elected President, after 
serving for two years as its acting President. He 
has proved a splendid and wise executive. Under 
his administration the society has made wonder- 


168 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


ful strides. It recently erected a building of its 
own to serve as a headquarters and ambulance 
house. The Secretary and Superintendent is 
Mr. John S. Ritenour, who was for many years 
editor of the Pittsburgh Dispatch. He was one 
of the original organizers of the society and its 
first Secretary. No man in the humane field is 
more respected than Mr. Ritenour. Mr. J. R. 
Park, of Pittsburgh, has also accomplished fine 
work. 

Ohio has had its share of prominent humani- 
tarians. Mr. James M. Brown, as President of 
the Toledo Humane Society, built up a strong 
organization in that city. From 1899 to 1904 he 
was President of The American Humane Asso- 
ciation and did important work for the national 
movement. His son, Mr. Walter FE’. Brown, suc- 
ceeded him in the Presidency of the Toledo Hu- 
mane Society. In 1893, Mr. Charles C. Ware 
became the chief agent of the society. He has 
been particularly alert in the prosecution of de- 
linquent parents and was one of the organizers of 
the Ohio Federation of Humane Societies. He 
is a very able and successful officer. In recog- 
nition of his long and faithful services, his soci- 
ety has given him a life appointment. 

Rev. William A. Robinson, D. D., is an ex- 
ample of a church leader who has become promi- 
nent in humane affairs. In 1907, he was elected 
President of the Ohio Humane Society, of Cin- 


Local Humane Leaders 169 


cinnati, and has always shown deep interest. He 
became a director of The American Humane 
Association at its Indianapolis meeting in 1912. 
For a number of years he was ably assisted by 
Mr. Oscar A. Trounstine, who was Secretary 
and General Manager of the society until his 
death in 1918. 

Youngstown, O., has produced Mr. Frank 
L. Baldwin, Secretary and Counsel of the 
Youngstown Humane Society. Mr. Baldwin is 
an attorney and has made use of his legal train- 
ing to advance the interests of his society. He 
is now a director and the second vice-president of 
The American Humane Association. From 
Columbus, O., comes Mr. Eugene Morgan, Sec- 
retary and Attorney of the Humane Society of 
the City of Columbus. He is a director of The 
American Humane Association and most active 
in its behalf. Both Mr. Morgan and Mr. Bald- 
win have played an important part in securing 
humane legislation and building up the Ohio 
Federation of Humane Societies. The latter is 
President of the Federation. Other notable 
Ohio men are Dr. Homer S. Ainsworth of the 
Van Wert County Humane Society and Mr. 
James K.. Ewers, executive officer of the Cleve- 
land Humane Society, which is doing a very 
valuable work for children. 

Rev. A. W. Ryan, D. D., was the President 
of the St. Louis County Humane Society, of 


170 Humane Society Leaders in America 


Duluth, Minn., and of the Minnesota Society 
for the Prevention of Cruelty. The executive 
officer of the latter society is Mr. Sam F. Fuller- 
ton, who is one of the most zealous workers in 
the field. It was due to Dr. Ryan that the eighth 
Provincial Synod of the Episcopal Church 
passed a resolution endorsing humane work. He 
was a director of The American Humane Asso- 
ciation and died in October, 1922. The agent of 
the Duluth society is Mr. John G. Ross, one of 
the leading exponents of modern anticruelty 
methods. | 

Omaha is the center of a progressive humane 
movement. Mr. Fred S. Martin is the President 
of the Nebraska Humane Society. With Mr. 
Welcome W. Bradley, as Secretary, the society 
is setting new standards of excellency. It has 
been particularly active in promoting humane 
education among school children and the devel- 
opment of child protection. Mr. H. S. Mann is 
entitled to much credit for the recent great de- 
velopment of the Nebraska Humane Society. A 
bequest by the late George Joslyn of $50,000, 
and another by the late Dr. George L. Miller, 
who founded the society in 1875, have given the 
society the basis of a fine endowment fund. It 
has recently erected a splendid group of up-to- 
date buildings for its work. 

East St. Louis, Ill., is proud of its St. Clair 
County Humane Society. Mr. James K. 


Local Humane Leaders 171 


Ewing, its Secretary, has advanced it to an en- 
viable place in the humane world. The Hu- 
mane Society of Missouri, located across the 
river at St. Louis, has been recently reorganized 
and promises to become a strong society under 
the leadership of its new President, Mr. Doug- 
las W. Robert. In St. Joseph, Mo., Mr. 
W. A. Ziemendorff has made a good record as 
Superintendent of the Humane Society of St. 
Joseph and Buchanan County. A modern Hu- 
mane Society flourishes in Tulsa, Okla., with 
A. M. Welch as its executive officer. 

Several successful humane societies are found 
in Texas. Mr. John M. Adams (recently de- 
ceased), Secretary and Treasurer of the Tarrant 
County Humane Society; Fort Worth, Texas, 
has been among the best known humanitarians 
in his state. He did some excellent work. Dr. 
Thomas A. Bray is another high grade humani- 
tarian. He is President of the Kl Paso Hu- 
mane Society. Rev. A. W. S. Garden is in- 
tensely interested in humane work. He was 
located at San Antonio, but has left the state. 
One of the most conspicuous humanitarians in 
Texas is Mr. Almon A. Locke, who has devoted 
his life and money to advance the interests of 
humane work, particularly the educational part. 
One of the most faithful friends of anticruelty 
work in Iowa has been Mr. L. C. Bissell, of 
Dubuque, long secretary of the society in that 


172 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


place. He has been a hard and consistent worker 
for the cause. Dr. A. EK. Frederick is a notable 
figure in humane work in Wisconsin, where he 
is the State Humane Officer. 

Mr. E. K. Whitehead, of Denver, is the 
author of a fine text book for schools on humane 
education. He has done much, as the Secretary 
of the Colorado State Bureau of Child and Ani- 
mal Protection, to improve range stock condi- 
tions and modify the evils of the Round-Up 
shows within his state. He is the author of 
numerous articles on humane work. In Chey- 
enne, Wyo., is found the Wyoming Humane 
Society and State Board of Child and Animal 
Protection, which has jurisdiction throughout 
the state. Mr. EK. W. Burke was the efficient 
Commissioner in charge of its work. He did a 
great deal to eliminate the abuses prevalent in 
handling range stock. He was a loyal supporter 
of The American Humane Association. The 
state has sustained a severe loss by his recent 
death. He has been succeeded by Mr. W. G. 
Harris, who is an ardent humanitarian. 

Mr. Henry A. Pershing, the volunteer Sec- 
retary of the South Bend Humane Society, of 
Indiana, has been active in work among: school 
children, and a familiar figure at the annual 
meetings of The American Humane Associa- 
tion. 

Mr. C. C. Carstens, for many years Secre- 





Local Humane Leaders 173 


tary of the Massachusetts Society for the Pre- 
vention of Cruelty to Children, of Boston, is well 
known among social workers. He was succeeded 
by Mr. Theodore Lothrop, who is a conscientious 
and hard worker. He has written extensively on 
various phases of child welfare. The Erie 
County Children’s Aid and Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Children, of Buffalo, 
N. Y., owes its present prosperous condition to 
the excellent work of Mr. Douglas P. Falconer, 
its Superintendent. The scope of the work has 
been enlarged, a new building has been erected, 
and the finances of the society placed in sound 
condition. 

The Central New York Society for the Pre- 
vention of Cruelty to Animals, with headquar- 
ters at Syracuse, has long been doing a very active 
and successful work in punishing violators of 
laws protecting animals. For many years the 
President was Mr. W. S. Peck, who gave close 
attention to the work of his society. He has 
been aided by the services of Mr. O. R. 
Casey, Superintendent, who has been a veteran 
in field work without a peer in his state. The 
head of the Children’s Society in Syracuse is 
President Willard A. Glen, who has long occu- 
pied the position. He is assisted by Superin- 
tendent Wm. C. Mesick, a practical and well 
trained officer. 

A record of recent humane development in 


174 Humane Society Leaders in America 


the United States would be incomplete if no 
mention were made of the earnest labors of men 
like Dr. W. G. Hollingworth, of Utica, N. Y.; 
Rev. Dr. Charles Scanlon, Secretary of the Pres- 
byterian Board of Moral ‘Welfare, of Pitts- 
burgh, Pa.; the late Mr. J. G. Middleton, of 
New Orleans; Superintendent Horace K. Ferry, 
of Cleveland; President James P. Briggs, of 
Washington, D. C.; President Irving I. Gold- 
smith, of Saratoga Springs, N. Y.; Superin- 
tendent Preston B. Chapman, of Yonkers, 
N. Y.; Superintendent John F. Hyland, of the 
Bronx, New York City; Superintendent Robert 
W. Hebberd, of Jamaica, N. Y.; Superintendent 
W. J. Boyink, of Rochester; Dr. H. J. Strei- 
bert, of Chicago; Father George L. Murray, of 
Lowville, N. Y.; Executive Secretary R. F. Sel- 
lar, of St. Louis; Secretary C. M. Young, of 
Des Moines, Iowa; Mr. W. H. Pingree, of Jack- 
sonville, Fla., and a host of others whose efforts 
have contributed in a very considerable degree 
to the full realization of humanitarian success. 
No anticruelty society in the States has a 
more able and enthusiastic President than the 
Toronto Humane Society, of Toronto, Can., in 
the person of the Rt. Rev. James F. Sweeny, 
D. D., Lord Bishop of Toronto. He has great 
faith in the value of the work performed by his 
society in relieving suffering. This society was 


Local Humane Leaders 175 


organized by Mr. J. J. Kelso, who is now Super- 
intendent of the Department of Neglected and 
Dependent Children, a movement that grew out 
of the Humane Society, which devotes itself to 
animal protection. This society is under the 
capable management of Mr. John Macnab Wil- 
son, who was for many years a vice-president of 
the organization. Mr. Wilson is also Secretary 
of the Ontario Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Animals, which consolidates the work 
of numerous similar societies throughout the 
province. He is a capable administrator, and 
both organizations, under his direction, are 
thoroughly successful. The Toronto Society is 
well equipped. It has an efficient staff, and pub- 
lishes The Humane Pleader, a monthly maga- 
zine which promises well for the future of hu- 
mane effort in Canada. 

One of the most earnest workers in the hu- 
mane cause in Canada is Mr. R. H. Murray, 
Barrister, now President of the Nova Scotia 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty. He has 
been associated with this work for many years 
and takes a very active interest in affording pro- 
tection for the helpless clients of his society. 

It is interesting to note that two great grand- 
sons of Mr. Richard Martin, familiarly known 
as “ Humanity ” Martin, who was the author of 
the first bill passed by a legislative assembly to 


176 Humane Society Leaders in America 


afford protection for animals, are residents of 
Canada. They are deeply interested in humane 
matters. One is Judge Archer Martin, of Vic- 
toria, British Columbia, who occupies an im- 
portant position on the bench in that section of 
Canada. ‘The other is Mr. Henry J. Martin, a 
Barrister, residing in Toronto. Both men are 
worthy of their great ancestor. 








CuaprTrer VII 


AMERICAN WOMEN AND THEIR 
NOBLE WORK FOR HUMANITY 


HE heart of American womanhood has 
always been sympathetic for the lot of the 
unfortunate. Her deep-seated instinct for 

right and justice has been shown in all of the 
great social reforms that have grown up in this 
country. Wherever ministration to the lot of 
those who suffer has been required she has re- 
sponded promptly and efficiently. Every disas- 
ter, every war, has found her ready to undergo 
hardship and personal suffering, if need be, to 
bring joy and comfort to those in distress. 

Until after the Civil War social convention 
prevented her from taking a lead in public af- 
fairs or becoming a member of boards of control 
of philanthropic movements, though it was fre- 
quently her generous and devoted spirit that en- 
abled success to be attained. It is most natural, 
therefore, that the preliminary work in prepar- 
ing the way for animal protection should have 
been taken by men. In all of the early societies, 
however, the founders have given unstinted 
praise to the assistance of devoted women. 

As the humane movement grew and women 


177 
I2 


178 Humane Society Leaders in America 


began to assert themselves more and take their 
places alongside of men in the initiation and 
direction of public affairs, women came to oc- 
cupy a seat of equal power in anticruelty work. 
In many places she has taken entire control. 
Without her devoted and self-sacrificing labor 
the humane cause could never have advanced so 
far or so rapidly. In fact, it is safe to say that 
were the support of the women of America sud- 
denly withdrawn, the large majority of societies 
for the prevention of cruelty to children and ani- 
mals would cease to exist. 

It is no easy matter to record adequately, in 
a few pages, the important contributions of many 
women to the anticruelty cause. Many of whom 
no record is available have worn their lives away 
in struggling to right wrong and check the cruel- 
ist. Others have possessed the power of leader- 
ship and have made lasting impression upon the 
humane cause. A few women are referred to in 
this chapter, but with the feeling that there are 
scores omitted who are equally entitled to recog- 
nition. 

Brief reference has been made elsewhere in 
this volume to the early efforts of Mrs. Caroline 
Earle White to arouse Philadelphians in behalf 
of animal protection. Kindness to animals was 
an ingrained quality of Mrs. White. She once 
wrote in a sketch of her life’ that as a little girl 


~— 





1Four Footed Friends, Volume 11, No. 7, October, 1912. 


American Women and Their Work 179 


she was passionately fond of animals and avoided 
certain streets near her home because, in passing 
over them, she nearly always witnessed scenes of 
animal abuse which depressed her for days after- 
ward. Mrs. White was born September 25, 1833, 
of Quaker parents. Her father, Thomas Earle, 
was an eminent lawyer, of Philadelphia, who 
wrote the new constitution of Pennsylvania. 
Her mother was a devoted Christian woman who 
took an active interest in the humanitarian work 
of her daughter and gave the movement the bene- 
fit of her enthusiasm and encouragement up to 
the time of her death in 1886. 

Caroline Earle married Richard P. White, 
a prominent Philadelphia lawyer and member of 
a well known Catholic Irish family, of Ireland, 
in 1856. Shortly afterwards she accepted the 
faith of her husband and became prominent in 
its charitable work. Krom him she learned of 
the splendid work being done in England by the 
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to 
Animals, and with his encouragement she aspired 
to have a similar society founded in America. 
The Civil War prevented any tangible move- 
ment until its close. It is not surprising, there- 
fore, that on learning of Henry Bergh’s activi- 
ties, she took the first opportunity of meeting him 
to learn concerning his work. ‘They met in 1866. 
Her subsequent part in helping to organize the 


180 Humane Society Leaders in America 


Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cru- 
elty to Animals has been told. 

In 1869, Mr. S. Morris Waln, President of 
the Pennsylvania society, called a meeting in his 
home to organize the Women’s Branch of the 
Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cru- 
elty to Animals. Thirty ladies attended, and 
Mrs. White was chosen President of the new or- 
ganization, a position which she held until her 
death, September 7, 1916, at the ripe age of 83. 
One of the first accomplishments of the Branch 
was the employment of an investigating agent. 
The number was increased to two before the end 
of the first year. Mrs. Earle, mother of the 
President, personally canvassed the homes in 
Germantown, where she lived, and raised enough 
money to pay one agent’s full salary. Humane 
education became a most popular feature of the 
society’s work and led to very gratifying results. 
In order to properly handle any legacies that it 
might receive, Mr. Mucklé, of the Pennsylva- 
nia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to 
Animals, suggested that the Women’s Branch 
be separately incorporated. Accordingly, Mrs. 
White, accompanied by several ladies, went to 
Harrisburg and secured the necessary charter, 
which had the effect of making it an independent 
society. The corporate name was changed in 
1897 to The Women’s Pennsylvania Society for 
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. 


American Womenand Their Work 181 


Mrs. White was the moving and guiding hand 
in all of the society’s activities, although she was 
fortunate in having the support of several able 
heutenants. In 1869 she caused the society to 
provide a temporary pound, conducted on hu- 
mane principles, and obtained the right from the 
city to collect the stray and homeless small ani- 
mals from the streets. In 1870 the city allowed 
the society $2,500 to meet the expense of this 
work. ‘This was the first attempt on the part of 
any society in the United States to handle the 
problem of caring for surplus or unwanted small 
animals, and as far as it can be ascertained the 
first appropriation ever made by a municipality 
for humane work. Sulphurous gas was em- 
ployed at first for disposing of the small ani- 
mals that had to be killed. A little later carbonic 
acid gas was substituted as being more humane. 
The pound work continues to be a prominent 
feature of this society’s work, and, following its 
example, it has been accepted as a part of the 
program of a very large number of anticruelty 
societies throughout the country. 

Mrs. White was firmly convinced of the value 
of humane education in the public and parochial 
schools and introduced humane essay contests 
among the children. In 1874, with the aid of 
Mrs. Charles Willing, Junior Humane Societies 
were formed among the boys. This idea grew to 
large proportions during Mrs. White’s lifetime. 


182 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


It was the first attempt of its kind in the United 
States and antedates the Band of Mercy move- 
ment with which these societies were ultimately 
merged. 

The cruelties in the transportation of live 
stock early attracted the attention of the 
Women’s Branch, and Mrs. White engaged ac- 
tively to suppress them. ‘The society’s agents 
were sent all over the state to secure evidence, | 
and several cases were bitterly fought out in the 
courts. When The American Humane Associa- 
tion turned its attention to this work, she was 
made chairman of a special committee to gather 
evidence. An agent was sent over a large area 
of the United States and much good was accom- 
plished, though far less than she had hoped for. 
She appeared at numerous hearings in Harris- 
burg, and also at Washington, in behalf of legis- 
lation to curb cruelties involved. 

The brutalities connected with the horse- 
drawn street cars of Philadelphia were a source 
of much distress to Mrs. White. She sought 
legislation to regulate the loads of the cars and 
the conditions of the animals, but with little suc- 
cess, other than the education of the public in 
regard to a grave abuse. ‘The agitation sub- 
jected her to ridicule but she moved steadily on, 
regardless of opposition, when her course seemed 
clear to her. 

Mrs. White was of the missionary type. It 


American Women and Their Work 183 


was not enough for her to see improvements com- 
ing in her own city in behalf of animal protec- 
tion. She wished to share her progress with 
places less fortunate, giving them the benefit of 
her society’s experience and literature. Her 
agents went through Pennsylvania, encouraging 
and developing the formation of other societies. 
Points in New Jersey, Maryland and New York 
profited through her liberality and enthusiasm. 
At one time her society attempted to maintain a 
colored humane missionary in the South, but 
without satisfactory results. 

Her vision of anticruelty problems made her 
appreciate the value of a national humane move-’ 
ment. She was a delegate to the first meeting of 
The American Humane Association in 1877, and 
always continued to be one of its most ardent 
supporters. For a number of years she served 
on its Board of Directors. 

Mrs. White will long be remembered for her 
pioneer antivivisection activities, which are cov- 
ered in Chapter VIII. Probably no American 
figure has exercised so great an influence in this 
direction as she. Pigeon shoots and fox hunts 
received her vigorous condemnation and led her 
to advocate laws for their prohibition. She 
championed bird preservation before the advent 
of the Audubon Society and helped to secure 
protection for the Atlantic shore birds. In fact, 
her labor covered every phase of animal protec- 


184 Humane Society Leaders in America 


tion. Her convictions were positive and never 
permitted a half way or compromise course. Such 
a character is always misunderstood and her posi- 
tion was often criticised in an unkind way. Fre- 
quently harsh words were used, but she bore all 
harsh remarks with the patience and humility 
that marked her noble character. 

In order to extend the influence of the Wo- 
men’s Branch of the Pennsylvania Society for 
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and ad- 
vance the cause of antivivisection, Mrs. White 
caused the Journal of Zoophily to be started in 
1892. It was published as the joint organ of the 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Ani- 
mals and the American Antivivisection Society, 
which she had founded. She became its editor- 
in-chief and continued as such until her death. 
This aggressive humane magazine was published 
under the same title until 1919, when it was en- 
tirely taken over by the American Antivivisec- 
tion Society and its name changed to The Starry 
Cross. It is now edited by the very capable Mr. 
Robert R. Logan, assisted by Mrs. Margaret 
M. Halvey as managing editor, a position she 
has held for many years. 

The Women’s Pennsylvania Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was among the 
first of the anticruelty societies to establish water- 
ing stations for horses. It was a favorite work 
of Mrs. White and she caused it to be widely 


American Women and Their Work 185 


used in Philadelphia. It was also under the 
direction of her society that the horse watering 
car was first introduced. During the last few 
years of her useful life the infirmities of age pre- 
vented her from taking as active a part as she 
desired. In spite of this, she maintained close 
touch with her society, wrote much for her maga- 
zine, and kept in correspondence with humani- 
tarian friends in many fields. On her death it 
was found that both of her societies and The 
American Humane Association had received 
legacies to aid in perpetuating their work. 

Mrs. White necessarily gave a great amount 
of time to make the various fields of her humani- 
tarian labor effective. Yet she found time to 
make her home a beautiful sanctuary. The 
charitable work of her church was very near her 
heart and she took a prominent part in its de- 
velopment, and gave to it freely of her time and 
money. She derived great pleasure in travel 
and visited Europe on several occasions. She 
also wrote several very creditable volumes of fic- 
tion and travel. Mrs. White was a woman of 
marked, individuality and of high moral and 
mental calibre. Her life was dedicated to good 
deeds and her life’s story plays an important part 
in humane history. Miss Lida H. Ashbridge 
-succeeded Mrs. White as President and is guid- 
ing the organization into new channels of useful- 
ness. There are other women associated with 


186 Humane Society Leaders in America 


the Women’s Pennsylvania Society for the Pre- 
vention of Cruelty to Animals who deserve prom- 
inent mention for their humanitarian services, 
but space will permit reference to only a few. 
The work of Miss Elizabeth Morris will be re- 
ferred to in the following chapter, for Miss Mor- 
ris was the founder of the first shelter for small 
animals in America. 

Mrs. Mary F. Lovell was one of Mrs. 
White’s most loyal and devoted co-workers. For 
many years she has been secretary of the 
Women’s Pennsylvania Society for the Preven- 
tion of Cruelty to Animals. Her voice and able 
pen have championed the cause with great vigor 
and effectiveness. She has appeared many 
times at Harrisburg before legislative commit- 
tees to speak in behalf of anticruelty and anti- 
vivisection bills. Through her influence the 
Woman’s Christian Temperance Union estab- 
lished its Department of Mercy and she was 
made its superintendent. She has written many 
humane leaflets, which have been distributed by 
tens of thousands. Her articles in the Journal 
of Zoophily, of which she has long been an Asso- 
ciate Editor, have been widely read and copied. 
She considers “ Humane Education is the real 
antidote to war and to all other cruelty and 
crime.” Mrs. Lovell is a director of The Ameri- 
can Humane Association and was its secretary 
from 1905 to 1907. She is President of the 


American Women and Their Work 187 


Montgomery County Society for the Prevention 
of Cruelty to Animals, at Wyncote, Pa. 

Mrs. C. W. Ritchie, who recently went to her 
eternal reward, was a co-founder with Mrs. 
White of the women’s animal protective society. 
For more than forty-five years she was its treas- 
urer, handling its funds with great care and effi- 
ciency. 

Many other Pennsylvania women have per- 
formed most meritorious humane services. Mrs. 
Bradbury Bedell is President of the Auxiliary 
to the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention 
of Cruelty to Animals, which maintains water- 
ing stations for horses, a couple of water cars, 
a gravel car and holds an annual work horse 
parade. Mrs. Bedell furnished the funds for the 
first watering stations in Philadelphia, and was 
the founder of the Animal Rescue League of 
that city. Mrs. Charles Willing and Mrs. Rob- 
ert Harford Hare did notable humane work 
among children; Mrs. William B. Griggs, Mrs. 
Elizabeth C. Easley, Mrs. F. B. Rutherford, 
Mrs. Fred Thurston Mason, Miss Anna P. Ste- 
venson, Mrs. W. G. Harding, Mrs. M. M. Hal- 
vey and many others have played an important 
part in developing anticruelty activities. 

Mrs. Lydia Ryerss left a large legacy to en- 
dow the Ryerss Infirmary for Dumb Animals. 
This was the first rest farm for horses in this 
country. ‘The animal dispensary maintained by 


188 Humane Society Leaders in America 


the Women’s Pennsylvania Society for the Pre- 
vention of Cruelty to Animals is known as the 
Annie L. Lowry Home for Smaller Animals. 
It was started with funds left by another pio- 
neer, Mrs. Annie L. Lowry, who was long as- 
sociated with Mrs. White. 

Humane education has always proven a 
favorite field among consecrated women human- 
itarians. The number who have made notable 
contributions to this branch of humane work is 
legion. Among the foremost in the list is Miss 
Sarah J. Eddy, of Bristol Ferry, R. I. It has 
been said of her by well informed humanitarians 
that “she has probably done more to advance 
humane education, not only in her own state but 
all over the world, than any one individual in 
the world.” ‘The number of humane leaflets 
which she has written and caused to be published 
and distributed is extremely large. Among her 
most notable books are those entitled “ Friends 
and Helpers” and “Songs of Happy Life.” 
Much organizing work has been done through 
her efforts. Her services have had a far-reach- 
ing effect and will continue for years to come, to 
guide the thought of man and child to a better 
understanding of their duty towards the help- 
less. Her benefactions have not been limited 
to the good of the animal world, for she has 
done much to ameliorate the unfortunate lot of 
many of the human family. She has been so 


American Women and Their Work 189 


modest and retiring in her work that many have 
never heard of her name, but among humanita- 
rians it is greatly respected and widely known. 
She has done an important humane education 
work for Spanish-speaking people. 

Another woman who has expended large 
sums of her own money in publishing and circu- 
lating humane literature, both in this country 
and abroad, is Miss Mary C. Yarrow, of Phila- 
delphia. Much of it has been the product of her 
own thought. Its effective, virile style has 
caused it to be widely read and quoted. The 
Spanish-speaking countries have made a special 
appeal to her, and much of the literature she has 
sent out has been printed in that language. She, 
too, has avoided the light of publicity. 

Miss Ruth Ewing, of Lake Forest, III1., is 
known largely through her connection with the 
Illinois Humane Society, of which she is a mem- 
ber of the executive committee and the only 
woman who has ever served the society in that 
capacity. She was editor of the Hwmane Advo- 
cate while it was regularly published by the 
Society. The ‘“ Book of the Beastie,” of which 
she is a co-author, is a valuable contribution to 
children’s humane literature. She was a Direc- 
tor of The American Humane Association and 
has served it loyally. Her interest in the I[lh- 
nois' Humane Education law helped materially 


190 Humane Society Leaders in America 


in having the subject featured in the Chicago 
Public Schools. 

The work of the late Miss Emma E. Page, 
of Olympia, Wash., was of far-reaching effect 
though she had very limited means and did her 
writing in spite of blindness and severe bodily 
suffering. Mrs. F. W. Swanton, of Portland, 
Ore., has performed excellent work as general 
manager of the Oregon Humane Society, par- 
ticularly for pound work and for range stock 
salvage. 

Many compulsory humane education laws 
owe their origin and spread to clear thinking, 
hard working women humanitarians. Miss 
Calla L. Harcourt, of Chester, Il., with the help 
of Miss Ruth Ewing, secured the passage of the 
first law of that kind, through the Illinois legis- 
lature, in 1909. ‘This has served as a model for 
similar legislation in several other states. She 
was made an honorary member of the Illinois 
Humane Society for her legislative fight in be- 
half of the Illinois anti-live bird trap shooting 
bill in 1905. Miss Harcourt was also an ardent 
antivivisectionist. While her humane labor has 
been most valuable, she once wrote that she pre- 
ferred to do her own work quietly and allow 
others to receive the credit. 

To Mrs. H. Clay Preston, of Hartford, 
Conn., belongs the credit of placing New York 
State in the ranks of those having a progressive 


American Women and TheirWork 191 


and practical humane education law. No gen- 
eral ever planned his campaign with greater 
care than did Mrs. Preston to get the bill through 
the New York State legislature. Several years 
elapsed from the time the bill was framed until 
it was introduced, but she wanted to be sure of 
its prompt passage before launching it. It be- 
came law in 1917. Important as was this achieve- 
ment, Mrs. Preston did not rest until she suc- 
ceeded in having a syllabus on humaneness pre- 
pared by the state education department. She 
was honored by the Commissioner of Eiducation 
with a place on the drafting committee. For 
many years she has been secretary of the New 
York State Humane Education Committee. 
Long before the teaching of humane education 
became compulsory she prepared and distributed 
thousands of “ Outlines of Study” among the 
teachers of the state, in which appeared a com- 
plete course of humane study for each grade. 
This compact, yet complete, outline was one of 
the most valuable ever published. She also com- 
piled and published a list of available humane 
books and leaflets for the use of teachers and 
students of humane problems. Mrs. Preston 
has done extensive lecture work in the schools 
of Buffalo and New York City and has ap- 
peared in nearly all of the Normal Schools of 
New York State. She is the wife of H. Clay 
Preston, manager of the Connecticut Humane 


192 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


Society and much interested in humane educa- 
tion in Connecticut. In New York City, she 
has been the representative of the American 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals 
in her humane education work. 

Mrs. S. A. Stevens, founder of the Maine 
State Humane Education Society, of Portland, 
Maine, was the sponsor of the humane education 
law in her state. Mrs. Stevens has since become 
Mrs. Rudolph M. Gilbert. In Alabama, Mrs. 
W. N. Wood, the efficient President of the Bir- 
mingham Humane Society, with the help of other 
noble women, succeeded in placing a similar law 
on the statute books of Alabama. 

Among New England humanitarians, Mrs. 
George T. Angell, wife of the famous Boston hu- 
mane educator, is much revered. The load of many 
years prevents her from being as active as she 
would like, but nevertheless she keeps well in- 
formed on the progress of humane work. Mr. 
Angell gave her the credit for much that he was 
able to accomplish. Her warm, sympathetic 
nature gave him courage to continue his work in 
spite of great opposition. Mrs. M. Jennie Ken- 
dall, of Nashua, N. H., developed a strong hu- 
mane organization with state jurisdiction. Mrs. 
Jennie Powers, of Keene, N. H., the Misses 
Elizabeth Almy Gatter and Georgia Gatter of 
Connecticut are dynamos of humane energy and 
have furthered the cause in their states. 
































American Women and Their Work 198 


The splendid accomplishments of Mrs. Anna 
Harris Smith, President and founder of the Bos- 
ton Animal Rescue League, and Mrs. Franklin 
Couch, of Dalton, Mass., the founder of the 
Berkshire Animal Rescue League, will receive 
notice in another chapter. Mrs. Smith is the 
editor of Our Four-Footed Friends, a splendid 
monthly magazine published by her League, and 
she has written some of the best stories for 
children that have been published. Miss Eliza- 
beth W. Olney, the Corresponding Secretary 
of the Rhode Island Humane Education Soci- 
ety, of Providence, and Mrs. May L. Hall, Sec- 
retary of the Humane Press Bureau of the 
American Humane Education Society, are help- 
ing to popularize humane ideals. 

Reference will also be made later to the ex- 
tensive work of Mrs. James Speyer, President 
of the New York Women’s League for Ani- 
mals, and Mrs. Diana Belais, the Founder and 
President of the New York Antivivisection 
Society. 

The popularity enjoyed by Mrs. Minnie 
Maddern Fiske, the actress, has made her work 
in opposition to trapping, range stock evils and 
other cruelties, most valuable. She has aided 
many local societies, and whenever possible plans 
to give humane addresses to groups of prominent 
women in the various cities in which she ap- 
pears. Mrs. Fiske’s devotion to the humane 


13 


194 Humane Society Leaders in America 


cause has accomplished great good because of 
her intense sincerity. 

There are few readers of New York papers 
but have seen at one time or another open let- 
ters appealing for the welfare of animals writ- 
ten over the signature of “G. KE.” Humanita- 
rians know this to be none other than the noble 
Miss Georgiana Kendall, whose life has been a 
benediction to thousands of persons and animals. 
She is Vice-President of The American Humane 
Association and a director of the American Hu- 
mane Education Society. Miss Kendall and her 
sisters give generously to the work of these and 
other humanitarian organizations. ‘Too much 
cannot be said in favor of the splendid humane 
work done by this fine humanitarian and her sis- 
ters. 

Those who have studied the “ Manual of’ 
Moral and Humane Education,” by Mrs. Fiora 
Helm Krause, recognize in her an able and effi- 
cient writer and worker. Her text book is 
among the best on this topic. ‘The widely read 
books of Miss Marshall Saunders have given her 
a high place in the humanitarian field. She is a 
prolific writer, whose books always appeal to the 
best in the minds of her readers. ‘“ Beautiful 
Joe” is probably the best known of her long 
and ever growing list of books. Over one mil- 
lion copies have been printed and sold. Another 
popular authoress, whose death was keenly felt 


American Women and TheirWork 195 


m humane circles, was Sarah K. Bolton. She 
was a true humanitarian, who uncompromis- 
ingly opposed cruelty in every form. 

Few writers had a wider effect upon the 
masses in this country than Mrs. Ella Wheeler 
Wilcox. She was a great animal lover and 
wrote many beautiful poems, appealing for their 
care and protection. She became “ the voice of 
the voiceless.”” So many and so valuable were 
these contributions that she was known as the 
“ poet laureate of humanity.” During the war 
she wrote for the Red Star and acted as its rep- 
resentative in England shortly before her death. 
She has been greatly missed. 

The development of the American Red Star 
Animal Relief brought to light many who had 
never before taken an active part in humane 
‘work. One of the outstanding figures in this 
regard was Mrs. Anita Baldwin, of Los Angeles. 
She served as Chairman of the Los Angeles 
Branch of the Red Star and raised large sums 
for its use. Her services won for her the honor- 
ary title of Colonel of a regiment located at 
Camp Fremont. When the war was over, she 
was elected President of the Los Angeles Soci- 
ety for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. 
She has since retired. Mrs. Baldwin is genu- 
inely fond of animals. 

Mrs. Lawrence Gronlund, of Oakland, 
Cal., Chairman of the Humane Education Com- 


196 Humane Society Leaders in America 


mittee of the State Humane Association of Cali- 
fornia, and Mrs. Alice Park, of Palo Alto, have 
been great humane missionaries. As an agent 
of the American Humane Education Society, 
the latter has maintained a Humane Press Bu- 
reau from which a vast amount of valuable 
material has reached the newspapers through- 
out the country. Mrs. Park has always taken a 
prominent part in the Peace Movement. 

Ohio has had its share of prominent humani- 
tarian women. Mrs. Herbert Gill presides with 
much influencce and ability over the Humane 
Society of the City of Columbus. Miss Anna 
M. Woodward, who began her humane educa- 
tion work with the Rochester Humane Society, 
of Rochester, N. Y., is rendering important ser- 
vice as Secretary of the Society for the Preven- 
tion of Cruelty to Children and Animals, of 
Youngstown, Ohio. She is usually present at 
the annual meetings of The American Humane 
Association. In Cleveland, Miss Stella ‘T. 
Hatch and Mrs. V. A. KE. Dustin, co-founders 
of the Cleveland Animal Protective League, 
have built up an important humane institution 
under great difficulties. They also have done 
yeoman service in working for humane legisla- 
tion. In Cincinnati, the Ohio Humane Society 
is under the active direction of Mrs. Theodore 
Workum. 

Miss Alva C. Blaffer is the only daughter of 


American Women and Their Work 197 


the late John A. Blaffer, a charter member of 
the Louisiana Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Children, of New Orleans. For 
many years prior to his death she took a great 
interest in her father’s work and aided in de- 
veloping the society’s activities. She is now one 
of its directors. She is also a director of The 
American Humane Association and made a 
special investigation for it on the treatment of 
children in Mexico. Her articles in The Na- 
tional Humane Review on this subject have 
created widespread interest in this country. Her 
missionary work for the humane cause in Mex- 
ico has been remarkably valuable and she has 
done much for animal protection and for the 
formation of Bands of Mercy among Mexican 
boys. 

Milwaukee humanitarians are proud of the 
work of Miss Lenore Cawker, who turned her 
own property into a shelter for small animals 
when the municipal authorities failed to provide 
suitable quarters fora pound. The work was car- 
ried on most effectively by her, but at great per- 
sonal expense. Recently the contract for this 
work was given to the Wisconsin Humane So- 
ciety. The great work done by Miss Harriet 
Bird, of Stow, Mass., who established Red Acre 
Farm for Horses, one of the first of the kind in 
the United States, is more fully mentioned else- 
where. Miss Mary B. Shearer, of Baltimore, 


198 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


President of the Maryland S. P. C. A., long 
has carried on a large and successful society, as 
has Mrs. Abner Larned, of Detroit, President 
of the Animal Welfare Association of that city. 
Among the most famous humane missionaries 
which this country has produced has been Mrs. 
Jeannette Ryder, of Havana, Cuba. Almost 
single-handed she opposed the bullfight and 
other cruelties in that great city. Her success 
has been remarkable. 

Humane work in Florida has been kept alive 
through the efforts of Mrs. Jennie Weller and 
Mrs. R. Fleming Bowden, President of the 
Jacksonville Humane Society, who have labored 
hard and successfully. Mrs. William B. Dixon, 
President of the Woman’s Auxiliary of the Ken- 
tucky Humane Society, now deceased, was par- 
ticularly active in humane education. Child and 
animal protection are looked after in Wilson, N. 
C., by Mrs. George W. Stanton. In Augusta, 
Ga., Dr. Sophia Davis has likewise done com- 
mendable work. In Wilmington, Del., Mrs. 
S. S. Deemer, now deceased, accomplished much 
good for the welfare of children as President of 
the Delaware Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Children. 

Mrs. Richard Hardy became a national 
figure among humanitarians through her work 
for the Red Star. The Branch, which she or- 


ganized in Chattanooga, Tenn., was among the 


American Women and TheirWork 199 


first to be formed. It raised a considerable sum 
of money for the national work and developed 
a training course in Chattanooga for those de- 
siring to enter the army veterinary corps. For 
more than a year Mrs. Hardy was in charge of 
the New York office of the Red Star, giving her 
services gratuitously. Mrs. Hardy is well 
known in her own state for her successful work 
as President of the Chattanooga Humane Edu- 
cational Society. She has been able to aceom- 
plish much through the public shools, where the 
children have been writing humane essays and 
drawing humane posters for several years. Mrs. 
Hardy is a director of The American Humanc 
Association. She is a woman of marked ability 
and a great humane leader in her state, where 
she has done valuable work for humane educa- 
tion. 

Among the genuine friends of the cause in 
the United States none has been more devoted 
or more deeply interested than Mrs. John J. 
Caulfield, of Grand Rapids, Mich. Her winter 
home is in Pasadena, Cal. In summer, Mr. and 
Mrs. Caulfield are apt to travel. 'The latter has 
written notable magazine articles on humane sub- 
jects, particularly on conditions in foreign coun- 
tries. Her interest has been most practical and 
helpful. She gave a considerable sum of money 
to The American Humane Association as a 


200 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


memorial to her mother, the late Mrs. John EK. 
Peck. 

Among the outstanding humanitarians of the 
Middle West is Mrs. George Josiyn, who is an 
important member of the Nebraska Humane 
Society, of Omaha. Mrs. Joslyn has generously 
aided in the erection of large and important 
offices and buildings for the society in Omaha. 
There never have been developed more genuine 
and sincere humanitarians than Miss H. H. 
Jacobs and her sister, Miss Sarah Jacobs, of 
Kansas City, Kansas. In season and out of sea- 
son, they have labored to relieve animals and 
have fought for their assistance with undaunted 
courage and marvelous ability. They deserve 
great credit. In the field of foreign work, par- 
ticularly in South America, Mrs. O. F. Fred- 
erick, of Reading, Pa., has labored most ear- 
nestly. In Hawaii, Mrs. W. W. Thayer, Presi- 
dent of the Hawaiian Humane Society, has done 
much good, as has also Mrs. Marie von Piont- 
kowski, President of the Philippine Society for 
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. In 
Alaska, Mrs. Beatrice Gasser has performed ex- 
cellent humane missionary work. 

Buffalo, N. Y., had an organized branch of 
the American Society for the Prevention of Cru- 
elty to Animals early in 1868. Among its fore- 
most workers was Mrs. Lilly Lord Tifft. Miss 


American Women and Their Work 201 


Margaret EF’. Rochester is the Secretary of the 
prosperous Hrie County Society for the Preven- 
tion of Cruelty to Animals, which succeeded the 
first organization. She introduced the humane 
essay contest in the public schools, where it has 
been an important feature since 1894. Many 
other women prominent in the social life of Buf- 
falo are active in the affairs of this society. 

Among the names of those active in humane 
work who should not be forgotten are Mrs. Wil- 
son Groshans, of Aurora, Ill.; Miss Bertha 
Shin, of Milwaukee; Mrs. Dotha Lantz, Presi- 
dent of the Indianapolis Humane Society; Mrs. 
Nora Gause, the indefatigable humanitarian of 
Kokomo, Ind.; Miss Dora Kitto, of Vancouver, 
B. C.; Mrs. A. R. Benson, of Regina, Sask.; 
Miss Carolyn Verhoeff, President of the Ken- 
tucky Animal Rescue League, of Louisville; 
Mrs. Zula Valentine, of Muncie, Ind.; Mrs. 
Madeline K. Vandegrift, of Philadelphia; Mrs. 
W. W. Tryon, long of Philadelphia; and the 
zealous Mrs. Jennie Nichols, of Tacoma. Mrs. 
George E. Greene, of Dayton, is another deeply 
interested humanitarian, as are also the Conant 
sisters, of Van Wert, Ohio. 

Scores of other women might be mentioned, 
as thoroughly deserving of recognition, who have 
earnestly furthered the humane cause. Their 
courage, their resourcefulness, their persistency, 


202 Humane Society Leaders in America 


are winning battles every day for their helpless 
and speechless friends. Their work may appear 
at times to be unappreciated and barren of last- 
ing results, but they are educating their com- 
munities, slowly but surely, to higher standards 
in the care and protection afforded unfortunate 
children and animals. | 


Cuaprer VIII 


OTHER ORGANIZATIONS FOR THE 
PROTECTION OF ANIMALS 
GROWING OUT OF THE 
HUMANE MOVEMENT 


S animal protection grew in popularity in 
America, it was most natural that pro- 
gressive humanitarians would find other 

channels than law enforcement, for the protec- 
tion and relief of animals. The importance of 
humane education was borne in upon all the pio- 
neers, and they took some momentous steps to 
reach the public with their message of kindness 
to every living creature. Shelters were created 
for the housing and humane destruction of small 
animals. It was but a step from this to rest 
farms for horses where animals might be pen- 
sioned by their owners or where the poor man 
might send his overworked animal for a brief 
rest at a nominal or no expense. All of these, 
~ and other activities in behalf of animals, were 
developed as offshoots of anticruelty societies. 


THe ANTIVIVISECTION MOVEMENT 


Alleged brutal and needless experimentation 
upon animals early attracted the attention of 
203 


204 Humane Society Leaders in America 


American humanitarians. Bergh, Angell, and 
Mrs. White were all outspoken opponents of all 
forms of vivisection. The attempt by Philadel- 
phia surgeons in 1871 to secure dogs for experi- 
mental use from the animal shelter that had just 
been established by the Women’s Branch of the 
Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Animals (later the Women’s Penn- 
sylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 
to Animals), thoroughly aroused Mrs. White 
and undoubtedly hastened the founding of the 
American Antivivisection Society. The society 
absolutely refused to comply with the request, 
and was sustained in its action by the city author- 
ities. 

In the course of several visits to England, 
Mrs. White had developed a warm friendship 
for Miss Frances Power Cobbe, who was the 
first to organize a society to oppose vivisection in 
Great Britain. She also met other antivivisec- 
tionists and became greatly impressed with their 
attitude. Miss Cobbe finally persuaded Mrs. 
White to organize a similar society in the United 
States. On her return home, she consulted with 
her intimate friend and co-worker, Miss Adele 
Biddle, daughter of a prominent Philadelphia 
bank president, and they called together seven 
or eight other interested women and organized 
the American Antivivisection Society. A char- 
ter was then secured from the state legislature. 


Other Animal Organizations 205 


Considerable difficulty was experienced in find- 
ing a gentleman who would act as President, but 
this was finally accomplished. Miss Biddle was 
elected recording secretary and Mrs. White one 
of the Vice-Presidents. Later Miss Biddle be- 
came secretary and Mrs. White, corresponding 
secretary, positions they held during the remain- 
der of their lives. 

This initial meeting was held February 23, 
1883, and marks the first concerted effort in 
America to regulate vivisection, for such was 
the original purpose of the American Antivivi- 
section Society. A few years later its purpose 
was altered and thereafter it fought for nothing 
less than its total abolishment. The movement 
at first was regarded by physicians more in the 
nature of a joke, but as bills calling for regula- 
tion began to appear in the state legislature, the 
medical opposition became extremely bitter and 
so effective that it was impossible to secure any 
restrictive legislation. On one occasion Mrs. 
White and Mrs. Mary F.. Lovell, who became a 
most ardent champion of the antivivisection 
cause, were obliged to face the leading physi- 
cians of Pennsylvania in a losing fight before a 
big legislative hearing at Harrisburg. At times 
it seemed to Mrs. White and her helpers that the 
cause stood still, but converts were being secured 
and the way prepared for the formation of other 
societies imbued with the same purpose in other 


206 Humane Society Leaders in America 


parts of the country. In 1892 the Society started 
the Journal of Zoophily, in conjunction with the 
Women’s Pennsylvania Society for the Preven- 
tion of Cruelty to Animals. It was devoted 
largely to antivivisection propaganda and is now 
owned and published exclusively by the Ameri- 
can Antivivisection Society. 

Several prominent newspapers and maga- 
zines unexpectedly joined the Society in its 
struggle, giving a considerable impetus to the 
movement. A number of prominent physicians 
also came out openly in support of its program. 
Probably no physician gave it more encourage- 
ment than Dr. Albert Leffingwell, who con- 
tributed many magazine articles and his well- 
known book entitled ‘‘ An Ethical Problem,” to 
its literature before he died. Dr Leffingwell was 
born in 1845 and died in 1919. He was promi- 
nent in his profession and, at one time, directed 
the well-known Dansville Sanitarium. In 1905, 
he served as President of The American Hu- 
mane Association until given a diplomatic post 
in Russia. 

Some few years before the death of Mrs. 
White, Mr. Robert R. Logan, of Philadelphia, 
became President of the Society, and in that 
capacity continues to further its work. Mrs. 
M. M. Halvey is now its Secretary. Through 
its office at 8248 Chestnut street, the 
Society sends out a large amount of literature 


Other Animal Organizations 207 


and publishes the Starry Cross, formerly the 
Journal of Zoophily. In Washington, D. C., the 
Rev. C. Ernest Smith is President of the Wash- 
ington Humane Society and of the National 
Society for the Humane Regulation of Vivisec- 
tion. He is a convincing speaker, expressing 
himself with remarkable clarity, and both socie- 
ties are flourishing under his direction. 

There are now several strong societies for the 
regulation or the prohibition of Vivisection. The 
New England Antivivisection Society has been 
very active in Boston. In 1911, Mr. KE. H. 
Clement, who for years was editor of the Boston 
Transcript, became its President, a position he 
held until his death in 1919. In 1911 he became 
President of the Interstate Conference for the 
Investigation of Vivisection, composed of 26 
antivivisection societies. An international con- 
ference was held in Washington, in 1913, under 
his direction. This society publishes the monthly 
magazine Living Tissue. 

The New York Antivivisection Society is 
presided over by Mrs. Diana Belais, a talented 
speaker and writer. She publishes The Open 
Door. Mrs. Clinton Pinckney Farrell and Mrs. 
Maude R. Ingersoll Probasco, daughter of the 
late Robert Ingersoll, are President and Cor- 
responding Secretary, respectively, of the Vivi- 
section Investigation League, Inc., of New 
York City. They are most active and able stu- 


208 Humane Society Leaders in America 


dents of this question and work incessantly to 
educate public sentiment against vivisectional 
cruelties. 


ANIMAL RESCUE LEAGUES 


The Animal Rescue League has represented 
a distinct department of animal protection, since 
1874, when Miss Elizabeth Morris, of Philadel- 
phia, established quarters where unwanted, 
homeless and injured cats and dogs could be hu- 
manely housed and destroyed. This was the first 
animal shelter in Europe or America. The 
work might even be traced back to 1858, when 
Miss Morris and Miss Annie Waln began their 
self-appointed task of picking up stray and un- 
wanted cats and dogs and chloroforming all 
they were unable to place in suitable homes. 

The animal shelter at first received aid from 
the Women’s Pennsylvania Society for the Pre- 
vention of Cruelty to Animals, but in time it 
seemed desirable to incorporate it as a separate 
organization. ‘This was done in 1888 under the 
name of the Morris Refuge Association for 
Homeless and Suffering Animals. The work 
of the Refuge grew very rapidly. Large num- 
bers of animals have received care in its substan- 
tial buildings in a single year. 

The Refuge had so many valuable features 
that it became the inspiration for similar organ- 
izations in France and England. Humanita- 


oe 7 he 
_ yey 
oe: 











Other Animal Organizations 209 


rians in America adapted the idea to suit local 
conditions in other cities. The Ellen Gifford 
Home, in Boston, was the first one to be estab- 
lished outside of Philadelphia. In 1899, Mrs. 
Huntington Smith founded the Animal Rescue 
League of Boston. So rapidly and efficiently 
did she develop this organization that it came to 
be the one after which a large number of other 
leagues were subsequently formed. Mrs. Smith 
developed a special genius for this class of work 
and raised and expended large sums of money to 
promote the efficiency of her League. The build- 
ings have been recently remodeled and the effi- 
ciency of the League greatly increased. In 
addition to the above, the Animal Rescue 
League purchased a large farm for the care of 
large animals and to serve as a Rest Home. 
Another feature of this really great and re- 
markable work was the creation of an animal 
cemetery which has been very largely patron- 
ized by Bostonians. It is a model in every re- 
spect. According to the most recent statistics 
there are now thirty-six organizations in this 
country devoted exclusively to animal rescue 
work. Animal rescue leagues and societies for 
the prevention of cruelty to animals occupy dif- 
ferent fields, although the latter societies may 
include relief work. The plan laid down by the 
Morris Refuge has been largely adopted by the 
organizations patterned after it; first, the estab- 


14 


210 Humane Society Leaders in America 


lishing and maintaining of homes in which ani- 
mals may be temporarily or permanently 
boarded by their owners; secondly, the equipping 
of hospitals for the treatment of sick or injured 
animals, and kindred work; thirdly, the provid- 
ing of refuges or agencies for homeless or suffer- 
ing animals where they may be received for a 
time, and where unwanted and undesirable ani- 
mals may be humanely destroyed. 

No city is thoroughly equipped to handle hu- 
mane work for animals unless it has a refuge or 
shelter in connection with the regular S. P. C. A., 
or ohe incorporated as a distinct organization. 
The animal refuge movement is plainly a relief- 
giving one and leaves the necessary work of 
prosecuting offenders, for cruelty to animals on 
the streets, to the S. P. C. A. organizations. The 
public is taught through a systematic campaign, 
by means of circulars and the press, where in- 
jured and unwanted animals can be disposed of. 
In this way thousands of animals are annually 
removed and painlessly destroyed, which would 
otherwise suffer from starvation and become a 
serious menace to public health. At the same 
time the shelter affords an opportunity for many 
to secure valued pets, a privilege appreciated 
by hundreds who could not otherwise secure 
them. 

Women have been the leaders in the develop- 
ment of the animal rescue league movement. 


Other Animal Organizations 211 


Such well known names as those of Mrs. James 
Speyer, of New York City; Miss Stella T. 
Hatch and Mrs. V. A. E. Dustin, of Cleveland; 
Mrs. Abner E. Larned, of Detroit; Mrs. Frank- 
lin Couch, of Dalton, Mass.; Dr. Mary E. Bates, 
of Denver, Colo.; Mrs. J. Norman Jackson, 
Miss A. M. Brown and Mrs. T. F. Halvey, of 
Philadelphia, are all associated with successful 
animal rescue leagues. A well equipped league 
is operated in Pittsburgh under the able direc- 
tion of its secretary, Mr. J. Ralph Park. Of 
course it should be very distinctly borne in mind 
that many of the regular societies for the preven- 
tion of cruelty to animals operate animal 
shelters. 


ANIMAL HOSPITALS 


The animal hospital is among the newer 
phases of anticruelty work. Mr. Henry C. 
Merwin, President of the Boston Work-Horse 
Relief Association and the founder of the Ash- 
ton Lawrence Animal Hospital, in Boston, has 
stated their purpose so well that the following is 
quoted from his pen: “There are many benefits 
arising from the hospital. Sick and lame horses 
suffer terribly from want of proper care. ‘The 
owner is too poor to employ a veterinarian, or 
he employs an incompetent one; there is no sling 
to save him from standing on diseased legs or 
feet; there is no soaking tub for his feet or legs; 


212 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


there is no hot water to relieve him from pain or 
inflammation. It happens very frequently that 
a horse is so injured in one hind foot or leg that 
he stands on three legs for days, sometimes for 
weeks, being afraid to lie down. What is the 
result? ‘The sound leg breaks down, too, under 
the double burden, and the poor creature is in 
torment until death relieves him. A sling would 
prevent this misery. 

‘A free hospital need not be a big affair. It 
might be simply a box stall in a livery stable, 
permanently hired for the purpose. Every hu- 
mane society should maintain something of the 
kind, a refuge for dogs and cats, and at least 
one stall in a public or private stable for an oc- 
casional horse who needs treatment, or food, or 
rest.”’ 

The American Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Animals, of New York City, was the 
first to erect a large building especially designed 
for animal hospital purposes. It was completed 
in 1914 at a cost of $200,000. The hospital is 
complete in every detail. It has stalls for sick 
animals connected by overhead trolley with the 
operating room, which is equipped with the fin- 
est operating table and surgical instruments. A 
special section is devoted to the cases of small 
animals. Everything is kept spotlessly clean and 
sanitary. A resident veterinarian is employed to 
care for the cases as they come to the hospital. 


Other Animal Organizations 213 


The New York Women’s League for Ani- 
mals also built a modern hospital in New York 
City, where many cases have been handled. The 
hospital was the outgrowth of a successful ani- 
mal clinic maintained for several years pre- 
viously by the League. It is admirable in many 
respects. The Angell Memorial Animal Hospi- 
tal, in Boston, is operated by the Massachusetts 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Ani- 
mals. It contains every modern device for treat- 
ing sick or injured large or small animals. This 
building affords a practical and at the same time 
a beautiful way of commemorating the work of 
Mr. Angell. Societies engaged in animal pro- 
tection in Philadelphia, Buffalo, and Pittsburgh 
have equipped their new headquarters buildings 
with some hospital facilities. Free animal clinics 
are a part of the work of the Animal Rescue 
League of Boston, the Anti-Cruelty Society of 
Chicago, the Cleveland Animal Protective 
League and societies for the prevention of cru- 
elty to animals in San Francisco and Los 
Angeles, and the Women’s Pennsylvania So- 
ciety for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, 
in Philadelphia. 


WorK Horst PARADES 


The Work Horse Parade idea originated 
many years ago in England. Annual parades 
are held in a number of leading English cities, 


214 Humane Society Leaders in America 


including Liverpool and London. In the latter 
city, a cart horse parade and a van (light horse) 
parade, are held on different dates. We do not 
know of any work horse parades on the conti- 
nent of Europe. ‘They are, however, annual 
affairs in Toronto, Halifax and Melbourne, 
which are located in English colonies. The first 
parade in this country took place in Boston, on 
May 30, 1903, under the direction of Mr. Henry 
C. Merwin, who was first to introduce the idea 
in this country. This was followed a few years 
later by a parade in New York City under the 
direction of the New York Work Horse Parade 
Association. Philadelphia was the next city to 
take up the work, under the direction of the 
Pennsylvania Work-Horse Parade Association. 
The parades in Boston, New York and Phila- 
delphia are well established annual events. They 
are also held with more or less regularity in the 
following cities: Baltimore, Chicago, Buffalo, 
New Orleans, Cincinnati, Columbus, Spring- 
field, Cleveland and Youngstown, Ohio; Mil- 
waukee, Minneapolis, Louisville; Grand Rap- 
ids, Muskegon and Manistee, Michigan; Seattle, 
Tacoma; San Francisco, Chico, Oakland and 
Los Angeles, in California; Burlington and Des 
Moines, in Iowa; Dallas, Texas; Ithaca, New 
York; New Haven and Hartford, Connecticut; 
Houlton, Maine; Hamline, Minnesota; Fall 
River, Waltham and Lynn, Massachusetts; 


Other Animal Organizations 215 


Hanover and Nashua, New Hampshire; Port- 
land, Oregon, and other cities. | 
In England the cart and the van horse 
parades are designed primarily for rich men and 
corporations. The parades in America avoid 
this as far as possible, especially by introducing 
a class for old horses, which has been a great suc- 
cess. In the Boston parade an “old horse ”’ is 
regarded as one that has worked for ten:years 
or more for one owner and is still in active ser- 
vice. The “Old Horse Class” always has many 
entries, and is divided into sections according to 
the age of the horses. Gold and silver medals 
and sums of money are offered as prizes. A 
class for “Champion Old Horses ”’ is also ar- 
-ranged for those that have won gold medals in 
the “‘ Old Horse Class” in previous years. In 
most cases the gold medal in this class, the high- 
est prize offered in the parade, has been taken 
by owners possessing only a single horse. The 
preference is given to old horses all through the 
parade. ‘The older the horse, the higher he is 
graded. Particular pains have also been taken 
to get entries from hucksters, from barrel-rack 
men and from the local expressmen. The horses 
of these owners are the most likely to be abused. 
New York City was the second place to take 
up the horse parade movement. It was begun 
in 1906 under the auspices of The New York 
Work Horse Parade Association, of which Mrs. 


216 Humane Society Leaders in America 


James Speyer was President, but was later 
taken over by the New York Women’s League 
for Animals and continued as an annual event 
until the war. Philadelphia has had many suc- 
cessful parades. ‘They are now held annually 
under the direction of the Auxiliary to the Penn- 
sylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 
to Animals. 

Those who have had any experience with 
work horse parades regard them with high favor 
as a means of publicity and of stimulating better 
care of work animals by owners and drivers. 


Homes or Rest ror Horses 


As Pennsylvania justly claims the distinc- 
tion of establishing the first small animal shel- 
ter, so is it entitled to the credit of founding the 
first Rest Farm for Horses. In 1888, while 
humane work was still in its infancy, Mrs. 
Annie Waln Ryerss left a legacy of $70,000 
to found the Ryerss’ Infirmary. In June, 1889, 
a farm was purchased about a mile from the Bus- 
tleton station, in the city of Philadelphia, and 
the first institution of its kind in America was 
formally opened. During the years that have 
followed, its stalls have been crowded to capacity 
with tired, wornout, old horses in need of rest or 
veterinary treatment. The farm consists of 114 
acres, with abundant pasture land. The rush of 


Other Animal Organizations 217 


wealthy people to utilize it as a place in which 
to pension old family favorites soon made it 
necessary to reserve twenty-one of the twenty- 
eight stalls for strictly charity cases. 

It is interesting to note that, as in the case 
of the small animal shelters, Boston was the 
second city to consider the establishment of a 
Rest Farm for Horses. In 1899, when Mrs. 
Huntington Smith founded the Animal Rescue 
League she included in her original scheme the 
development of such a farm. The feature of 
the work, however, was not carried out until 
1907. In the meanwhile, Miss Harriet G. Bird, 
a practical philanthropist and humanitarian, be- 
came convinced of the desirability of such an in- 
stitution and, in 1903, opened Red Acre Farm, 
near South Acton, “ with a black horse and $8.00 
in the Treasury.” The start can not be de- 
scribed as encouraging, but those acquainted 
with the founder needed no prophetic insight to 
realize that the venture would be a success. At 
the close of the first summer, 14 horses had been 
eared for; $1,100 contributed to the work, 
and the original barn had been made over to ac- 
commodate 15 horses, in eight box and seven 
straight stalls. The work grew so fast that 
within three years a new barn was needed to 
care for the horses coming to the Farm for rest 
and treatment. This barn contains nine stalls. 

As fast as improvements or additions have 


218 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


been needed at Red Acre, means have been dis- 
covered to attain them. In 1910 the Farm found 
itself cramped for pasture room and increased 
its acreage by purchase until it now has 120 
acres of land, most of which is in pasture. 

As already mentioned, the original plan of 
the Animal Rescue League of Boston included a 
Rest Farm for Horses. This was created in 
1907 by the purchase of 21 acres at Dedham. 
The Farm was appropriately called Pine Ridge, 
and soon became an important factor in the relief 
and care of wornout or decrepit animals. Its 
work is necessarily very similar to that of the 
Ryerss’ Infirmary and Red Acre, already de- 
scribed. It avoids, as far as possible, the “ pen- 
sioner ’’ and seeks to make itself of particular 
value to the poor who could not afford, of their 
own accord, to give their horses necessary rest 
to build them up for service. In order that as 
many people as possible may be encouraged to 
visit Pine Ridge, a special Visitors’ Day is ob- 
served each spring or summer. The public, how- 
ever, is made welcome at all times except on 
Sunday morning. 

In 1918, the Massachusetts Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was presented 
with a farm of 160 acres at Methuen, Mass., 
where a large number of animals have already 
received care. ‘The San Francisco Society for 
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has re- 


Other Animal Organizations 219 


cently established a rest farm. ‘The Erie County 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, 
of Buffalo, N. Y., rented a farm for such purposes 
as long as it could retain a lease of a place suitable 
forthe work. Several other societies are planning 
to acquire them. ‘This line of humane work has 
so much merit that it will be most regrettable if 
it is not more generally employed. 


ANIMAL CEMETERIES 


The practice of marking the graves of favor- 
ite pets is not new, though the development of 
animal cemeteries is of comparatively recent 
origin. The Duke of Cambridge is credited 
with having started the first one at Hyde Park, 
London, in 1881. It now has more than four 
hundred graves. Several other small cemeteries 
are known to exist in Great Britain. Queen 
Victoria and Gladstone are among the distin- 
guished persons who have created private ceme- 
teries and erected markers for their favorite 
animals. 

A celebrated animal cemetery is located on 
the Isle des Chiens, near Paris. Since it was 
opened in 1898 several hundred animals have 
been buried init. The beautiful memorial erected 
to the memory of Barry, the famous St. Bernard 
of the Alps, who saved the lives of forty per- 


220 Humane Society Leaders in America 


sons and was killed by the forty-first, is located 
near its elaborately carved entrance. 

The first two animal cemeteries of size in 
America were the Hartsdale Canine Cemetery 
and the Kanis Ruhe, both commercial ven- 
tures. ‘The former is in Westchester County and 
was started in 1898. It comprises five acres of 
ground and has more than seven hundred inter- 
ments. Kanis Ruhe is at Miller Farms, York- 
town Heights, N. Y., and has received the bodies 
of several hundred animals since 1906. Some 
very handsome marble and granite stones have 
been erected on the graves in these cemeteries by 
the owners of the animals buried there. 

Mr. Frank L. Myers purchased a beautiful 
ten acre grove, in 1907, which he has developed 
into an attractive animal cemetery near Hornell, 
N.Y. Itis free to those who wish to use it, and 
several hundred have availed themselves of its 
privileges. 

The publicity which has been given to the 
Animal Rescue League, of Boston, has made 
the animal cemetery on its “Rest Farm” at 
Dedham, Mass., as well known as any in the 
United States. It is one of the finest in this 
country. The site is ideally chosen and has been 
selected by many as the last resting place of their 
pets. There is also a large animal cemetery at 
the Francisvale Home for Smaller Animals near 
Philadelphia. 


Other Animal Organizations 221 


Several other similar burial grounds have 
been started in the United States. It is a work 
well in keeping with that performed by animal 
protective or rescue societies and may be most 
advantageously undertaken in connection with 
Rest Farms at small expense. A few dollars 
will buy a plot of ground near a city large 
enough to take care of all demands until funds 
are available for larger accommodations. The 
number of persons patronizing them will increase 
as information concerning them becomes known. 


Brrp Protection SOCIETIES 


The National Association of Audubon Socie- | 
ties may be taken as the typical organization of 
its kind in the United States. It is a national 
organization, admirably managed and giving a 
most beneficial service. Since its original forma- 
tion the Audubon Society has been directly re- 
sponsible for the passage of the Audubon Law in 
41 states. The law protects song and insectiv- 
orous birds. Its laws prohibiting the sale of 
plumage have been enacted in 14 states, includ- 
ing those containing all the large cities. The 
Association has been active in securing much 
other legislation, both state and federal, for 
bird protection. 

It inaugurated the system of bird reserva- 
tions in this country and induced the United 


222 Humane Society Leaders in America 


States Government to create 72 of them. For 
many years it paid the salaries of the wardens 
guarding these great cities of breeding water 
birds. ‘There are also about 50 Audubon reser- 
vations, which it controls and protects. 

This Association annually publishes and dis- 
tributes about three million colored pictures of 
birds and twelve million pages of literature on 
bird study and bird protection. It maintains a 
corps of active field agents and lecturers; has or- 
ganized more than two million children into bird 
study clubs; distributes stereopticon slides, mov- 
ing pictures, charts and other bird study helps. 

It is maintained that some of the earliest 
legislation for the conservation of bird life 
were secured by Mrs. Caroline Earle White. 
The records seem to show that the first Audubon 
Society was organized in 1886, by Dr. George 
Bird Grinnell, editor of Forest and Stream. It 
died out, but was revived in 1896 by the organi- 
zation of several state Societies. These were 
federated in 1902 and later, in 1905, were 
merged into the National Association of Audu- 
bon Societies. It played an important part in 
obtaining the ratification of the Migratory Bird 
Treaty with Canada. 


CHAPTER IX 


OTHER MOVEMENTS FOR CHILD 
SAVING DEVELOPED FROM 
ANTICRUELTY WORK 


child.” From the fundamental principle 

of justice, with natural rights guaranteed 
by legal process, there has developed movement 
after movement designed to make child life hap- 
pier and more profitable; also a more fitting 
preparation for citizenship in adult life. Every 
community has organizations affording recrea- 
tional facilities or promoting the physical, mental 
and moral development of the young. Clubs and 
societies are striving to bring out the: best quali- 
ties in childhood and establish a basis from which 
may evolve finer types of manhood and woman- 
hood. Agencies exist to rescue the child when its 
well-being is jeopardized by indifferent or 
neglectful parents or guardians. Courts planned 
to deal wtih peculiar problems involving children 
have been created. Probationary methods have 
been formulated to correct misguided lives, de- 
graded or endangered by unhappy environment, 
and to rehabilitate them. Schools of reform, 

293 


fl gers has well been styled “the age of the 


224 Humane Society Leaders in America 


founded on new ideals and inspired in their direc- 
tion by new conceptions as to remedies for human 
ills, are the resort for those whose cases cannot 
be solved without recourse to special institutions. 
Judgment of the courts and of the law in cases 
concerning children is no longer uttered in terms 
of vengeance and severity. Its aim, and the 
aim of the thousands who have bent intellect and 
heart to the solution of the child problem, is the 
formation of true character and the development 
of opportunity and ability to rise above subnor- 
mal surroundings. 

The germination and growth of many agen- 
cles now recognized as indispensable to the wel- 
fare of the nation’s child life have given emphasis 
to the fact that when Henry Bergh and El- 
bridge T. Gerry organized the New York 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children 
they gave to the child, the world over, a new 
magna charta. 'The basic motive in that first 
society of its kind is to-day the foundation prin- 
ciple of hundreds of similar societies scattered 
throughout the world. Some still adhere solely to 
the original purpose and program, leaving charit- 
able and welfare service to those desiring to spe- 
cialize solely along such lines but, nevertheless, 
with cognate motives. Other societies for the pre- 
vention of cruelty to children have also taken on 
collateral work as a part of their humane pro- 
gram. Local conditions have, to a certain ex- 























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Other Movements for Child Saving 225 


tent, governed the actual scope of the child pro- 
tection society’s operations. Density of popula- 
tion, or the reverse, has frequently been a de- 
termining factor in the creation of the policy. 
In Ontario, Canada, for example, protection of 
children has been combined with the work of 
children’s aid societies, each and every county 
having its children’s shelter with a local volun- 
teer governing board, but with one general policy 
throughout the province centered in the govern- 
ment department at Toronto. ‘This department, 
since its inception, has been under the direction 
of Mr. J. J. Kelso, to whose ability and whole- 
hearted devotion is largely due the success of the 
plan. 

In the state of Wyoming, and elsewhere, the 
Commission of Child and Animal Protection 
also undertakes the added service of child plac- 
ing and adoption. Wisconsin has appointed a 
state officer to direct and develop local effort for 
the well-being of children and the protection of 
animals, linking up the different agencies dealing 
with children in much the same manner as is 
done in Ontario. In Buchanan County, Mo., a 
shelter for abandoned children and those eligible 
for adoption was found to be indispensable to the 
work of the child protection society. The society 
accordingly promoted what is known as the Shel- 
tering Arms, a charming home for little ones in 
a beautiful mansion with spacious grounds, in 


15 


226 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


the city of St. Joseph. The society, however, 
placed the Sheltering Arms under the direction 
of a separate Board, although every child in the 
home is a ward of the humane society and no 
child can enter or be removed, for adoption or 
otherwise, except at the will of the humane 
society. At East St. Louis, Ill, it was found 
necessary to operate a day nursery for children. 
In numerous cases men deserted their wives and 
children, and the St. Clair County Humane So- 
ciety, rather than break up the home, has taken 
care of children, enabling the mother to follow 
gainful occupation. ‘Thus the family has con- 
tinued to be wholly, or partially, self-supporting. 
In many instances family differences have been 
dispelled, husband and wife have been brought 
together again and the home rehabilitated. This 
would have been very difficult, frequently im- 
possible, but for the fact that the home had been 
retained intact. And the motive back of it all 
was, and is, the well-being of the child. 

In the state of Ohio the law has conferred 
upon child protection societies the duty of col- 
lecting from delinquent and absconding fathers 
weekly sums for the support of their families, 
the money so collected being paid over to the 
families without deduction of any kind. This 
work is most successfully carried out. Hundreds 
of thousands of dollars are collected annually, an 
enormous amount of suffering is prevented, re- 


Other Movements for Child Saving 227 


conciliations are frequently brought about and 
the dependents are in no danger of becoming 
public charges. Through this service, also, offi- 
cials of the societies are in constant touch with 
the deserted families and their problems, and are 
able to render helpful service at the time it is 
needed. 

It would be difficult to state definitely just 
what organizations are a direct outgrowth of the 
society for the prevention of cruelty to children. 
It can be stated, however, that most of those 
designed to improve the lot of children who have 
not become wards of the state—such as orphans, 
foundlings and those adjudged guilty of crime— 
have come into existence since 1875. Reference 
will be made to a few of those that have had and 
are having an important influence upon the de- 
velopment of American child life. 


THE JUVENILE CouRT AND PROBATION SYSTEM 


The Juvenile Court, as an institution, is of 
recent origin, though its underlying principles 
have been recognized during many years by 
statutes in various states. Massachusetts passed 
a law in 1863 requiring the separation of children 
and adults charged with offenses against the law. 
In 1877, the Hon. Elbridge T. Gerry secured 
passage of a law in New York State which pro- 
vided that no child under the age of sixteen 


228 Humane Society Leaders in America 


“shall be placed in any prison or place of con- 
finement or in any vehicle in company with adults 
charged with or convicted of crime, except in the 
presence of proper officers.’ Michigan and 
Massachusetts laid the basis for juvenile proba- 
tion prior to 1880, though the system was not 
generally followed. New York made a further 
advance by a law, passed in 1892 through the in- 
fluence of the New York Society for the Preven- 
tion of Cruelty to Children, which allowed separ- 
ate trial, special docket and separate record of 
cases of children under sixteen. Other states in- 
jected varying features, but in none was there a 
comprehensive statute embodying the working 
features of the juvenile court, as it is known 
to-day, until that passed by the Llinois Legisla- 
ture, April 21, 1899. 

The movement in Illinois was largely the out- 
come of a comprehensive study made by the 
Board of State Commissioners of Public Chari- 
ties who recommended to Governor Tanner cer- 
tain changes in the law. Among the facts which 
had been brought forth it was shown that in the 
year 1898 there were 575 children charged with 
offenses confined in the Cook County jail, and 
that in the twenty months ending November I, 
1898, there were committed to the city prison at 
Chicago 1,983 boys, exclusive of repeaters. ‘The 
only charge in twenty-five per cent of these cases 
was truancy. 


Other Movements for Child Saving 229 


To Mr. R. S.Tuthill, as the first presiding off- 
cer, belongs the distinction of being the first 
juvenile court judge in America, while Judge 
Hurd is recognized as “ the Father of the Juve- 
nile Court Law.” 

Those engaged in service for delinquent 
children were quick to see in the juvenile court, as 
established in Chicago, a wonderful vehicle for 
the reformation of children and their diversion 
from the dangerous paths along which they had 
thoughtlessly started. It offered a practical 
means of stepping between the child guilty of 
some offense against the law and the punishment 
for its infraction without minimizing the serious- 
ness of the act in his sight or “ putting a pre- 
mium on the commission of the crime.” 

The theory of the Juvenile Court is that a 
child under sixteen cannot commit a crime, but is 
rather regarded as a victim of circumstances. It 
is a court for the protection and reformation of 
children, and Judge Hurley expressed it tersely 
when he said: “ The child should be treated as a 
child.” Distinction is made between delinquent, 
dependent, neglected and wayward children. 
Separate detention rooms must be provided to 
prevent their association with adults who may 
have acquired criminal ways. Shelters belonging 
to societies for the prevention of cruelty to 
children have.been largely used, in those cities 
where they exist, to carry out this principle. 


230 Humane Society Leaders in America 


Separate hearings are provided for children, 
either in open court or in chambers. Many suc- 
cessful judges have adopted informal and un- 
ceremonious methods in conducting these hear- 
ings in order to secure the confidence of the child 
and thus learn from him the full and true facts 
of the case. In no part of the judicial system is 
the expert more needed than where the cases of 
children are under consideration. 

The Juvenile Court and the probation system 
are inseparably interlocked. Success depends in 
no small degree upon the probation officers under 
whose direction the child is placed for a period 
while his environment is being changed or im- 
proved and the cause of the delinquency is re- 
moved. In the most advanced types of the court 
the parents or guardians are held responsible for 
the offense of the child, which requires proba- 
tionary oversight for them as well as for the 
child himself. 

Without question the Juvenile Court is one 
of the most valuable agencies in the reformation 
of the delinquent child. Through its influence 
thousands of children have been kept out of cor- 
rectional institutions that have, alas, been only 
too often breeding places of criminal careers. 
The percentage of second offenders among 
children placed on probation is relatively small. 
The reform school is now regarded as the last 
resort. Only when all known means have been 


Other Movements for Child Saving 2381 


unsuccessfully employed to give a child a normal 
viewpoint of his moral obligation to society is he 
committed. 

Many improvements have been made in the 
organization of Juvenile Courts since the plan 
was first evolved in Illinois, but the underlying 
principles therein set forth are still regarded as 
sound. Scarcely a state is now without some 
modification of the Juvenile Court for the bene- 
fit of children whose cases call for court action. 
Future years will see still further improvements 
and even better results. The rapid growth which 
has attended its development, however, is only 
another evidence that we are literally living in 


the epoch of the child. 


Cuitp LABOR ABUSES 


The development of the factory system in the 
United States about the middle of last century 
created a demand for a cheap labor supply. 
Many of the tasks were such as might be per- 
formed by child labor, and in conformity with 
the old colonial notion that an idle child was the 
plaything of the devil, the manufacturers and the 
community excused themselves for abuses which 
they realized were being committed. Certain in- 
dustries, such as textile mills, found this labor 
particularly profitable and few of the older fac- 


232 Humane Society Leaders in America 


tories and mines were free of the stigma of hav- 
ing availed themselves of it. 

Conditions were admittedly bad, but no one 
knew how to interfere, for there were no laws de- 
signed to regulate them. Children toiled, with 
the consent of their parents, who were held to 
have property rights in them. Children of six and 
seven years of age were worked on ten and twelve 
hour shifts. There is on record, in the Bureau 
of Labor, a report of 1870, which tells of child 
workers having cold water dashed in their faces 
when they fell asleep at their gruelling tasks, and 
of being whipped with leather straps, from which 
pointed tacks protruded, when they were lazy or 
disobedient. A fire in a Fall River plant, in 
1878, burned to death a number of seven-year- 
old children, and led to the establishment of a 
rule that no boy or girl under ten years should 
be employed in Massachusetts factories. 

Statistics on child labor were not available 
until 1870, when 739,164 children, between ten 
and fifteen years of age, were recorded as being 
gainfully employed in the United States. The 
Census of 1900 showed 1,750,158 children— 
nearly one out of every six children between the 
ages of ten and fifteen years in the United States 
—engaged in gainful occupations, and this did 
not include thousands of children under ten years 
of age. In 1904 only fifteen states had a four- 
teen-year age limit for children in factories, only 


Other Movements for Child Saving 2838 


eight states prohibited night work for children, 
night messenger service was unregulated, eleven 
states had no age limit or other restriction, seven- 
teen had no school attendance laws, and twenty- 
seven had no educational requirements for child 
workers. In the southern states twenty-five per 
cent of the mill operators were under sixteen, 
compared with 7.7 per cent for the northern 
states. Kighteen per cent of cotton mill opera- 
tors were under fourteen; more than ten thou- 
sand under twelve. 

Alabama was the pioneer in the movement to 
abolish child labor abuses. Edgar Gardner 
Murphy, who organized a State Child Labor 
Committee, in 1903, secured the passage of a 
law which set the highest standard then attained 
by any manufacturing state in the South. It 
was immediately apparent that a national organi- 
zation was necessary if the problem was to be 
solved, that child labor was in its essence a na- 
tional question, and that a higher standard in one 
state gave undue advantages to neighboring 
states having lower standards. Accordingly, in 
1904, a group of individuals notable among whom 
were Edgar Gardner Murphy, Wm. H. Baldwin, 
Jr., Felix Adler and Mrs. Florence Kelley, in- 
vited representative citizens from all over the 
country to unite in the formation of a National 
Child Labor Committee with headquarters in 
New York City. Mr. Samuel McCune Lindsay 


234 Humane Society Leaders in America 


also took part in the creation of the national 
body. In 1907 the organization was incorporated 
by Act of Congress. 

The principal purposes of the Committee, set 
forth in detail at the time it was organized, were 
to raise the standard of public opinion and paren- 
tal responsibility with reference to the employ- 
ment of children; to make public facts concerning 
child labor; to assist in protecting children by 
suitable legislation against premature or other- 
wise injurious employment, and thus aid in secur- 
ing for them an opportunity for elementary edu- 
cation and physical development; to aid in the 
enforcement of laws relating to child labor. 

Owen R. Lovejoy became general secretary 
in 1907 and threw himself wholeheartedly into 
the work of promoting reform. An examination 
of recent state laws shows how much was accom- 
plished in the sixteen years following incorpora- 
tion of the Committee. The summary of state 
laws to the close of 1922 reveals the following 
facts: 

In all but three states the age minimum for 
factory work and in many other employments is 
at least fourteen years, seven states having a 
minimum of fifteen years, though exemptions are 
permitted in many states. 

Twenty-seven states (including all the most 
important mining states) have sixteen as the 
minimum age for work in mines, four have a still 


Other Movements for Child Saving 235 


higher minimum, eight have a fourteen year 
minimum and nine have no age minimum. Four- 
teen states, and the District of Columbia, have 
laws requiring children engaged in street trades 
to secure permits; ten have laws affecting boys in- 
dependently engaged in street work. Every state 
has some kind of compulsory school attendance 
law; twenty-six require attendance up to the age 
of sixteen; two require full time schooling up to 
sixteen for all children; twenty-six have laws re- 
quiring attendance at continuation schools. 

In 1904 there were 1,750,178 child laborers in 
the United States; nineteen years later the num- 
ber was reduced to a little more than a million. 
Two attempts have been made to deal with the 
evil by federal legislation, but the laws of 1916 
and 1919 have been declared unconstitutional. 
The National Child Labor Committee and 
other organizations are now working on an 
amendment to the Constitution which will give 
Congress the power to regulate child labor, and 
thus bring about the emancipation of the army of 
juvenile toilers. 


Tue Bic BrorHer MoveMENT 


The Big Brother niovement, which with the 
Big Sister organization, is now flourishing in 
more than a hundred cities in this country, in 
Canada, and in other countries, and which in- 


236 Humane Society Leaders in America 


cludes two hundred and fifty organizations that 
are carrying on this individual service for under- 
privileged boys and girls, had its origin in New 
York in 1904. A group of forty men, members 
of the Men’s Club of the Central Presbyterian 
Church, listened to an appeal by Colonel Ernest 
K. Coulter for individual interest in boys who 
had never had a chance. He asked each man to 
take an interest in just one boy who had been the 
victim of evil environment, to show him there 
was some one who cared, who would be a sort of 
big brother to him and would be of real service. 
The plea was accepted, the Big Brother Move- 
ment was formed. To-day it flourishes in coun- 
tries as far distant as China and New Zealand, 
and in each of the three great branches of re- 
ligious faith—Protestant, Catholic and Jewish. 

It was apparent to Colonel Coulter, who was 
Clerk of the Court and had helped to establish 
that humane tribunal, soon after the Children’s 
Court of New York City was organized, in 1902, 
that no one judge, nor dozen judges, nor hun- 
dreds of probation officers (had they been avail- 
able) could indefinitely keep in human and help- 
ful contact with the thousands of children that 
were coming into the Children’s Court. Often 
when a boy who gave promise of useful develop- 
ment came into court, facing the prospect of com- 
mitment to an institution because there was no 
one to give him a chance, Colonel Coulter en- 


Other Movements for Child Saving 237 


listed the interest of individual friends. Posi- 
tions were found for boys with men of good-will, 
who were willing to show them that there was 
someone who cared. Others were encouraged by 
individual interest to continue their schooling. 
Often these boys had been truants and were 
headed for reformatories when the Big Brother 
became a factor in their lives. A boy once de- 
fined a friend as “a feller who knows all about 
yer, but likes yer jest de same,” and this was the 
kind of friendship that was needed when the first 
forty Big Brothers were enlisted. For a year the 
work was carried on without a line of publicity, 
giving time to establish the fact that the plan was 
sound. To-day it extends not only to children 
who have come in contact with the law, but in its 
larger phase reaches out to the preventive side. 
It is largely due to this, as judges of many 
children’s courts testify, that the number of 
children arraigned for delinquency has decreased 
within recent years. 

Men who had always lived in comfortable 
homes, who had had things fairly easy in life, 
were soon climbing tenement steps and learning 
how their little brothers really lived. No man 
was asked to look after more than one boy. He 
was urged neither to patronize nor pauperize his 
charge but to make it possible for the boy to 
progress and maintain his self-respect. Giving 
money without some service in return, except in 


238 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


direst emergency, was discouraged. Care was 
taken that the right men got in touch with the 
right boys, it being realized that contact between 
certain temperaments would be futile. The men 
not only called on the boys in their own homes but 
had the boys call on them. Interest in the little 
fellows was not confined to the Big Brother, but 
spread to his wife or members of his family, with 
favorable results. As Big Brother organiza- 
tions were started among Catholics and Jews, 
there was the assurance that boy and man in 
every case professed the same faith; indeed, this 
has always been one of the fundamentals. 

In 1909 an organization of Big Sisters was 
started, and in May, 1917, a Big Brother and 
Big Sister National Federation was formed, in 
Grand Rapids, Mich., with the idea of affording 
helpful cooperation. 'The Federation has held 
conventions annually since that time, and main- 
tains offices at 200 Fifth avenue, New York City. 
At the convention in Philadelphia, in 1921, Colo- 
nel Coulter was elected Founder and Honorary 
Life President of the organization. George Mac- 
Donald, New York, is President, and Rowland 
C. Sheldon is Executive Secretary in charge of 
the Federation’s offices. 

In no more convincing terms could the Big 
Brother movement be described than in the 
words of the late President Warren G. Harding: 
“ There is no human being, no matter how humble 


Other Movements for Child Saving 239 


his position, but who in some way is an example 
to some one else. * * * There is nothing 
finer in life—and I say this with my whole heart 
and soul—than a kindly word or deed at the right 
moment. It often saves the young man and is 
sometimes the turning point in his life, inspiring 
him with renewed courage and a fresh hold on 
life. The expressed encouragement that a Big 
Brother or Big Sister gives the youngster fre- 
quently is all that is needed to turn a liability into 
an asset for the city, the state, and the nation.” 


Tue Boy Scout MovEMENT 


One of the most successful efforts to combat 
the evils and temptations of the boy gang, with 
its undirected activities, has been the develop- 
ment of the Boy Scout movement. Its program 
has been built on the theory that the best in boy- 
hood can only be brought out by placing respon- 
sibility upon its shoulders. ‘To witness the events 
of a field day of the Boy Scouts, to see them give 
their demonstrations of first aid, camp craft, 
bridge building, fire fighting, and hear them re- 
peat in unison the scout oath, their voices 
charged with enthusiasm and sincerity, as they 
pledge themselves “To do my duty to God and 
my country, and to obey the scout law; to keep 
myself physically strong, mentally awake, and 
morally straight,” is to be thrilled and to realize 


240 Humane Society Leaders in America 


that the national boyhood has approached a new 
understanding of adolescent life. 

Kindred movements for girls have been or- 
ganized under the name of “Girl Scouts,” 
“Campfire Girls,” and other titles, with gratify- 
ing success. ‘The programs are planned to de- 
velop the finest qualities of womanhood by giving 
purpose to their play and by training them in 
useful and practical arts. 


PLAYGROUNDS FOR CHILDREN 


The Playground and Recreation Association 
of America was organized in 1906. Among 
those vitally interested in its promotion were 
Theodore Roosevelt, Jacob Riis, Luther H. 
Gulick and Henry S. Curtis. The purposes of 
the Association are to secure wholesome play and 
recreation opportunities for young and old; to 
help cities and small communities establish year- 
round recreation systems and to make spare time 
count for a better citizenship. 

In the year of organization only forty-one 
cities in the United States had year-round sys- 
tems of recreation for their young people. The 
growth of the play movement under the Associa- 
tion’s leadership is shown by the fact that, in 
1922, 505 cities had year-round or summer recre- 
ation centers under trained leadership. 


Other Movements for Child Saving 241° 


HEALTH AND WELFARE OF CHILDREN 


Societies for the study of child hygiene, in- 
stitutes for the care of crippled and diseased 
children, open air schools, health clinics for pro- 
spective mothers, are so numerous as to excite no 
comment. ‘They exist in various forms in most 
localities, some maintained on a voluntary basis, 
others subsidized or wholly conducted by public 
authorities. Most of them have national affilia- 
tions. 

The American Child Health Association was 
formed in 1923 by merging the Child Health 
Organization of America, founded in 1918, and 
the American Child Hygiene Association which 
was organized in 1909. The purpose of the 
Child Health Organization of America was to 
raise the health standards of the American 
school child. Among the active leaders in the 
movement were Sally Lucas Jean, Mrs. Lucy 
Wood Collier, Dr. L. Emmett Holt, Mrs. Fred- 
erick Peterson and Dr. Thomas D. Wood. It 
proclaimed health as a positive thing, teaching 
what to do to achieve health rather than what not 
to do. Since the merging of the two organiza- 
tions the joint work has been considerably de- 
veloped. Under the present program it is pro- 
posed to obtain a true picture of conditions re- 
lating to child health, nationally and locally, upon 
which to base effective action; to work through 
states and communities to build up, organize and 

16 


242 Humane Society Leaders in America 


develop local and state-wide health programs; to 
promote a more effective service for health in 
existing national groups, and to bring about fur- 
ther public information and education. The ad- 
ministrative office of the Association is at 370 
Seventh avenue, New York City, and Mr. Her- 
bert Hoover is its President. 

The National Child Welfare Association is 
rendering excellent service in directing public in- 
terest to the physical, mental and moral welfare 
of children. The posters, pictures and booklets 
for educational and campaigning purposes to 
promote the normal development of children, is- 
sued by this Association, are unique, clever and 
effective. They treat on such subjects as pre- 
natal care; proper care of babies and children; 
growth of the child through play, study and 
work; moral and religious training and cognate 
topics. The Association is supported by the sale 
of exhibit material and literature, by contribu- 
tions and membership dues. ‘The office is located 
at 70 Fifth avenue, New York City. 

As might be expected state bureaus of child 
hygiene have been developed of recent years, 
usually as an adjunct to the department of 
health. The first was established in 1912; in the 
succeeding eight years the number increased 
to thirty-four. It is natural that the exact 
nature and extent of the operations of such bu- 
reaus vary in the different states, and is also 


Other Movements for Child Saving 248 


governed by the amount of the appropriation 
available for the bureau, but where adequate 
funds have been available excellent results have 
been achieved, especially in the rural sections. 

In addition to the work of the state bureaus 
an important service is rendered by the Chil- 
dren’s Bureau, which is an adjunct of the De- 
partment of Labor, Washington, D. C. The 
Children’s Bureau is directed by law to investi- 
gate and report on all matters pertaining to 
children and child life. It investigates such ques- 
tions as infant mortality, infant care, birthrate, 
maternity care and mortality, orphanages, juve- 
nile courts, family desertion, dangerous occupa- 
tions for children, child labor, and legislation af- 
fecting children in the several states and terri- 
tories. ‘The Bureau makes intensive studies of 
various aspects of child welfare, social, indus- 
trial, economic and hygienic. The results of 
these studies have been published in a series of 
bulletins and widely circulated among agencies 
devoted to service for the child. Miss Grace 
Abbott, as Chief of the Bureau, directs its opera- 
tions with full regard for the importance of the 
task. 


ScIENTIFIC STUDY OF THE CHILD 


Of recent years it has become more and more 
recognized that a considerable proportion of the 
cases involving children who have come within 


244 Humane Society Leaders in America 


the operations of the juvenile court, humane 
societies and many philanthropic organizations, 
require scientific study and diagnosis, if the cases 
are to be handled in an intelligent way. ‘The 
psychiatrist is now a recognized factor in social 
service. Many instances of juvenile delinquency 
present problems which can be dealt with only on 
the basis of psychiatric study. Within recent 
years the Psychopathic Institute held in connec- 
tion with the Cook County Juvenile Court of 
Chicago, and the Judge Baker Foundation, in 
Boston, with Dr. Healy and Dr. Bronner, have 
engaged in intensive scientific study of delin- 
quency, and in some other large centers similar 
work is being undertaken. The National Com- 
mittee for Mental Hygiene has done much 
propaganda towards more general adoption of 
programs of this character, and, with financial 
support from the Commonwealth Fund and 
under the supervision of Dr. V. V. Anderson, has 
staged demonstrations which have impressed 
courts and probation officials with the importance 
and value of the psychiatric study of delinquents. 

Notable among those who have paved the 
way in this field in the United States may be men- 
tioned Dr. EK. R. Johnstone, Director of the 
Vineland Training School for Mental Defec- 
tives; Dr. H. H. Goddard, who did so much to 
further the use of intelligence tests in study of 
the feeble-minded; Dr. Walter E. Fernald, who 


Other Movements for Child Saving 245 


has advanced the study of the feeble-minded 
along many channels; Dr. Terman, Dr. Porteus, 
Dr. Gessell, and many others. 

In the field of delinquency many studies have 
been made in certain sections of the United 
States by different investigators. Much data has 
been gathered in reference to the mental condi- 
tion of delinquents, as well as of other people 
who are objects of social service activities. 

Some judges of children’s courts have ex- 
pressed unwillingness to dispose of “ repeating ” 
offenders unless psychiatric opinion was avail- 
able. Public school systems have developed in 
many cities systems of special classes for the 
training of feeble-minded, psychopathic and 
other types of deviate children, and it is being 
increasingly recognized that admissions to such 
classes should be on the basis of complete examina- 
tion of each case. Psychiatry and psychology are 
being definitely enlisted in the service of justice, 
education and social service. Certain medical 
schools are giving their senior students definite 
instruction on the subjects of mental deficiency, 
juvenile delinquency, mental hygiene programs, 
ete. Certain institutions for mental defectives 
and a few so-called reform institutions have well 
organized departments for the scientific study of 
their charges. Many hospitals for mental dis- 
ease have psychological laboratories where 
routine psychiatric consideration of patients 


246 Humane Society Leaders in America 


may be supplemented by intensive psychological 
studies. The Boston Psychopathic Hospital 
is an outstanding example of such provision, with 
Dr. Wells, a broadly trained psychologist, head- 
ing the work. The Whittier State School, Whit- 
tier, California; the Berkshire Industrial Farm, 
Canaan, N. Y.; the Maryland School for Boys, 
Loch Raven, Maryland; the institution at James- 
burg, N. J., and the Industrial School, Industry, 
N. Y., are examples of so-called reformatories for 
juvenile delinquents, where attempts are made to 
apply training and treatment on the basis of 
scientific study of the cases. The Berkshire In- 
dustrial Farm does intensive work in this line and 
attempts to utilize the various vocational lines of 
training as well as the rich recreational life of the 
place in accordance with psychiatric rules. 

It is often the judgment of high-class execu- 
tives in humane work that psychiatric advice 
should be available to schools, courts and institu- 
tions for feeble-minded and delinquent children, 
and that these afford excellent opportunities for 
laboratory study of their conduct. Complete 
physical, neurological, psychiatric and psycho- 
logical examination might profitably be given 
those persons presenting special problems to 
social agencies, and such examination should be 
available especially for delinquents. We are 
especially indebted to Dr. Clinton P. McCord, of 
Albany, N. Y., for much of the information in 
this important subdivision of Chapter IX. 








Joun G. SHORTALL 


President, The American Humane Assoctation, 1884 
to 1885 and 1893 to 1899 


CHAPTER X 


SHORT SKETCH OF THE HISTORY 
OF THE AMERICAN HUMANE 
ASSOCIATION 


HE American Humane Association was 
an founded as the need for a national humane 
organization came to be felt. It is de- 
scribed in its annual reports as “a federation of 
societies and individuals for the prevention of 
cruelty, especially cruelty to children and ani- 
mals.” How well this association has fulfilled its 
functions can easily be understood by considering 
its history. Originally its founders were 
especially concerned in abuses connected with 
stock transportation. Gradually, other subjects 
engaged its attention until at the present time it is 
vitally interested in all the major humane reforms 
which have developed in the United States. It is 
also deeply concerned in extending humane prop- 
aganda and the introduction of humane educa- 
tion into all schools. It assists, through its 
agents, in forming new anticruelty societies and 
in reviving weak or dormant ones. Its cor- 
respondence has increased enormously; letters 
come from all parts of the world, asking advice. 
247 


248 Humane Society Leaders in America 


It publishes The National Humane Review, 
which is the official organ of the anticruelty move- 
ment in this country, and prints a large amount 
of leaflet literature and humane tracts, which are 
widely distributed. Other great progressive re- 
forms are contemplated. 

This Association came into existence in 1877 
as the result of a meeting of humanitarians called 
in Cleveland by Mr. John G. Shortall, then Pres- 
ident of the Illinois Humane Society, to consider 
means for combating abuses connected with cat- 
tle transportation. Mr. Shortall’s call read: 


Office of the Illinois Humane Society, 
Chicago, Sept. 15, 1877. 
Dear Sir: 

In pursuance of a resolution adopted by the Ilh- 
nois Humane Society, looking to the calling of a con- 
vention or conference of the leading humane societies 
of the country, for the purpose of considering the 
question of the maltreatment of animals in transit 
between the East and West, it has been proposed that 
such a convention be held in the city of Cleveland, 
Ohio, at a place hereafter to be notified to you, on 
Tuesday, the ninth day of October next, at 10 A. M. 

We cordially invite your presence there, feeling 
sure of your appreciation of the necessity of some 
concert of action in this important matter, important, 
as it is, to both producers and consumers, as well as 
to the cattle that are compelled to suffer the barbarous 
treatment that is often so wantonly inflicted upon 
them. 

If you should be prevented from attending, please 
have your society appoint a proper committee to speak 
for it. 


The American Humane Association 249 


It is proposed that legislative action be demanded 
on the decision of this conference. 
Very respectfully yours, 


JoHn G. SHORTALL, 
President, Illinois Humane Society. 


Twenty-two delegates, from ten states, repre- 
senting twelve societies, gathered at this now his- 
toric meeting and decided that much good would 
be accomplished by a permanent organization. 
Mr. Edwin Lee Brown, who was the first Presi- 
dent of the Illinois Humane Society and an able 
and conscientious gentleman, was selected as its 
first President. Mr. Abraham Firth, Secretary 
of the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention 
of Cruelty to Animals, was elected Secretary. 
Much credit for the early work is due to the 
latter, who gave it much time and large financial 
assistance. Mrs. Caroline EK. White, President 
of the Women’s Pennsylvania Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, was present at 
this meeting and was placed on the Executive 
Committee with George T. Angell and others. 
The name “ International Humane Society ” was 
adopted, but this was changed at the second meet- 
ing, held in Baltimore, to the one by which it is 
now known, The American Humane Association. 
At the Baltimore meeting, Mr. Bergh and Mr. 
Angell were present and took part in the pro- 
ceedings. <A legislative agent was employed to 
remain at Washington to work in behalf of the 


250 Humane Society Leaders in America 


passage of the cattle transportation act, then be- 
fore Congress. 

During the third year of the Association's ex- 
istence, Mr. Zadok Street, of Salem, Ohio, 
traveled 18,000 miles in behalf of the Associa- 
tion’s survey of stock transportation abuses. ‘The 
frightful condition of the cattle cars caused the 
Association to raise a special fund of $5,000, in 
1880, as prizes for the best improved cattle car. 
No awards were ever made, because the contest- 
ants refused to convey the rights in their inven- 
tions to the Association. The outcome of the 
- contest, in which 710 designs were submitted, re- 
sulted in immediate improvements in the types of 
new cars built by the railroads. Hight gold 
medals were subsequently awarded the best de- 
signs. For four years the Association employed 
travelling agents for all, or part time, in securing 
additional evidence of the unfortunate lot of cat- 
tle transported by train. Stockyard agents were 
employed and stationed for a period at Albany 
and Buffalo. In 1882, a test case was brought to 
the courts against the Boston and Albany rail- 
road and a conviction was obtained of the rail- 
road officials for violations of the 28 hour law. 
This was a notable case and of great value to the 
whole cause. 

The fund that had been raised for the cattle 
car contest was used in 1884 for paid advertise- 
ments in newspapers of every political party; also 





Epwin LEE Brown 
First President, The American Humane 


Association, 1877 to 1884 and 


1889 to 1891 





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The American Humane Association 251 


in the leading religious magazines, besides those 
known as agricultural, railroad, stock, ete. This 
was the first nation-wide advertising campaign 
ever attempted by humane organizations. 

Among the generous early financial backers 
of the Association were Miss Anne Wigglesworth 
and Mrs. Wiliam Appleton. The latter will be 
recalled as the active helper of George T. Angell 
in organizing the Massachusetts Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. 

The terrible conditions governing transporta- 
tion of food animals from farms and ranches to 
the stockyards were vividly shown in reports 
presented from time to time to the Association. 
At the inaugural meeting in Cleveland, in 1877, 
George A. Martin, whose professional duties had 
made it necessary for him to attend the East 
Buffalo stockyards daily, reported: “The live 
stock traffic of the country is a long line of suf- 
fering from the West to the East. And when the 
jaded, frantic, feverish animals arrive at their 
eastern destination, they are hurried to the sham- 
bles, their flesh little, if any better fit for human 
food than so much carrion. And then the dis- 
eased and bruised animals, which are unfit from 
the moment of shipment—cattle with putrid, 
malignant ulcers on the lower jaw; sheep crip- 
pled with foot-rot (80,000 foot-rotten sheep 
passed through East Buffalo in a single year) ; 
ewes hurried to the cars, leaving lambs a few 


252 Humane Society Leaders in America 


hours old to bleat their brief lives out in the de- 
serted pens; hogs purple with the so-called hog 
cholera—all these were daily sights in the great 
cattle yards. * * * Millions of suffering 
brutes which cannot speak for themselves, and 
thousands of consumers of diseased flesh, uncon- 
scious of the wrongs inflicted upon them, are in 
reality represented at your Conference in Cleve- 
land.” 

The little band of humane enthusiasts was 
not viewed with favor by legislators, and every 
conceivable slander was hurled by the interests 
to hold up the approaching reforms. One of the 
commonest replies to requests for a stringent 
transportation law was that the reform was 
sought “in the interests of patent cars ’"—to cre- 
ate a market, and financial gain for the inventors 
who saw the need of humane transportation and 
were trying to solve the problem. The Associa- 
tion, however, sought to deal with the evils not 
only by legislation, but also by conciliatory nego- 
tiation with the livestock interests. Some 
progress was made, although it was very slight. 

The reports of Zadok Street, traveling hu- 
mane agent, were a long recital of infamous con- 
ditions. It almost appeared as though the vast 
bulk of those engaged in the livestock business 
were actuated by the spirit of demons. Hun- 
dreds of dead animals were taken from the rail- 
road cars. Cripples were dragged out, by the 


The American Humane Association 253 


head, ears, tail—anyhow—and left to die. In 
one instance a steer had been so burned to make 
him get up that the carcass was unfit for market- 
ing. Other tortures were of a kind that could 
not be set forth in print. At places where cattle 
trains stopped the men who accompanied the 
animals walked alongside and jabbed and 
prodded all that were down, until they arose to 
their feet—if they were able to do so. Still the 
reformers worked in spite of the jeers of cattle- 
men, who referred to them as “long-haired come- 
outers’ and in various other terms of oppro- 
brium. 

The first really great step in advance was 
made when the Federal Government placed the 
enforcement of the 28 hour law in the hands of the 
Department of Agriculture, and the Bureau of 
Animal Industry was given the task of enforcing 
the law. ‘This has been done honestly and effi- 
ciently, and is being so enforced to-day. If The 
American Humane Association had taken up no 
other question than that of stock transportation 
it was worth while. To-day the prod is almost 
eliminated, and representatives of the cattle- 
raisers, railroads, packing houses and other in- 
terests meet in conference, including representa- 
tives of The American Humane Association, to 
discuss plans and methods by which losses and 
injuries can be still further reduced. The world 
is learning that humanity pays. 


254 Humane Society Leaders in America 


Next to transportation, importance has at- 
tached to the starvation of cattle on the ranges 
and to the subject of slaughterhouse reform. 
Both of these were discussed at many of the an- 
nual conventions. It was shown that the losses of 
cattle and sheep on the great ranges, due to star- 
vation and exposure, amounted to millions upon 
millions of dollars. Local anticruelty socie- 
ties were powerless to accomplish much relief. 
In one state the law specifically exempted from 
punishment men who starved their stock to death. 
The cattle were simply turned loose to gamble 
with death. They had to face starvation and 
thirst in the awful blizzards of the western ranges. 
They died by tens of thousands. 

The public lands were overrun with stock. 
No rent was paid. The range which formerly 
supported millions of buffalo was depleted. Men 
who owned cattle fought men who owned sheep 
for priority of grazing rights. Cattlemen, at 
times, were said to have killed off all the sheep 
they could. In two reported instances it was 
said that flocks of sheep were driven over preci- 
pices and dashed to pieces on the rocks below. 
Local societies were unable to cope with the 
problem; it was too vast. The American 
Humane Association has fought the evil with 
unceasing publicity, advocating that the public 
domain should be controlled and regulated by 
the Department of Agriculture in the same man- 


The American Humane Association 255 


ner that the lands included in the Forest Re- 
serves are controlled, grazing privileges being 
granted only to stockmen who have enough ranch 
property to take care of their stock in winter. 

Some improvement has been made, but the 
problem still presses for solution. Education 
through the agricultural colleges, the public 
schools, stock markets and other avenues has 
done something. There is an awakening con- 
science. One important factor has been the in- 
creased value of livestock, during the period 
beginning with the world war. Many stockmen 
who formerly gave no kind of winter care now 
gather quantities of rough forage in the fall 
and are able to take care of their animals in 
winter. They find that it pays. There is, ap- 
parently, no single remedy for the condition and 
only a gradual improvement can be looked for. 
Government regulation of grazing on public 
lands will help most. The herds are lessening in 
size so there is less suffering. The homesteaders 
are taking up more land and caring for their 
stock. All this accomplishes much. 

Many efforts have been made to abolish the 
horrors of the slaughterhouses. One of the most 
important moves in this direction was the offer 
of a prize of $10,000 by the American Society 
for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, for a 
successful device, or instrument, by means of 
which animals about to be slaughtered may be 


256 Humane Society Leaders in America 


promptly and effectively stunned. A. special 
committee on slaughterhouse reform was ap- 
pointed by The American Humane Association, 
of which Dr. F. H. Rowley, of Boston, was made 
chairman. The campaign against slaughter- 
house cruelties has been pushed with the greatest 
vigor. 

As The American Humane Association grew 
its vision developed. It used its influence from 
time to time to prevent the introduction of bull- 
fighting into the United States. It fought the 
rodeo, round-up, wild west show, and every other 
form of brutal sport. It gave full support to 
local societies in conflicts with evils they were 
not powerful enough to fight single-handed. 
The Association was among the first to protest 
against the extermination of the buffalo, of wild 
life generally, and especially of birds. 

The Association took note of evil condi- 
tions in all parts of the world, notably in 
South America, where (in Peru) it was re- 
ported that animals were flayed alive because of 
the belief that the skins so taken were more 
durable and flexible. Gander pulling in Califor- 
nia was a “sport” which was checked. A live 
gander was suspended, its neck smeared with 
grease, and men on horses rode swiftly under- 
neath, grabbing the gander by the neck, and in 
some instances tearing off the head. Largely 
due to the Association’s influence transportation 


The American Humane Association 257 


conditions on cattle ships were vastly improved 
and the horrors of the journey of livestock from 
the United States abroad have been minimized. 
The introduction of cold storage transportation 
of dead meat abroad has eliminated much of the 
cause for complaint, but stock transportation 
in the United States is still unsatisfactory. Com- 
mittees at different times reported on the need 
for the humane destruction of small animals, on 
the bad management of city pounds and other 
abuses. Local societies in this manner were 
benefited by the latest and best available knowl- 
edge on various subjects. 

In the early days of The American Humane 
Association its activities were devoted exclu- 
sively to the welfare of animals. Some of the 
constituent societies, however, were engaged in 
the dual work of protecting children as well as 
animals, and the report of the St. Louis meeting, 
in 1885, was the first to be illustrated with the 
Association’s new double seal, which depicted on 
one side the protection of animals and on the 
other the protection of children. Delegates from 
child protection societies did not attend, as such, 
until the Rochester meeting in 1887. So far as 
child protection was concerned the Association 
centered its efforts towards guaranteeing such 
protection from every form of abuse and cruelty, 
and the enforcement of laws for their protection. 
Shocking abuses were discovered. At Rochester 


17 


258 Hwmane Society Leaders in America 


the convention discussed methods for dealing 
with fathers who deserted their families. Subse- 
quently the treatment of children in institutions 
was investigated, and at Louisville, in 1889, Mr. 
Brown, of Chicago, declared that most fiendish 
eruelties had been found to have been inflicted 
upon children in the institutions of that city. 
The horrors of child life, even so recently as 
1891, were exposed at the Denver meeting, where 
it was reported, in the campaign against infanti- 
cide, that bodies of 3,000 children a year were 
consigned, even when alive, to the sewers or 
thrown into the river at Philadelphia. In an- 
other city, to obtain insurance money, one woman 
murdered her two children and her husband, for 
which the death penalty was inflicted. Reports 
of children killed on so-called baby farms were 
numerous. Gradually the work for children de- 
veloped along broad lines, but with the central 
motive that the movement was not one of char- 
ity, almsgiving or welfare, but essentially one 
of justice and legal protection in the widest and 
best sense. This attitude was clearly defined on 
several occasions by Mr. Elbridge T. Gerry and 
other leaders. It was feared that, if the societies 
were engaged in child welfare only and the basic 
principle of protection was lost sight of, or at 
least made subservient to other’ features, the 
legal work of child protection, for which the 


The American Humane Association 259 


children’s societies were especially created, would 
be neglected or cease. 

In the early days of the Association there 
were members sufficiently far-sighted to realize 
that it should have a charter of incorporation, 
and at the Baltimore meeting, in 1878, it was 
decided to ask Congress for such a charter, to 
include “ all the legal powers that such a society 
ought to have in carrying on a national humane 
work.” ‘This resolution was reaffirmed a year 
later, at Chicago, but it was not acted upon. 
However, the subject cropped up at several con- 
ventions, but there were differences of opinion 
as to what should be the main purposes of the 
Association and how far its jurisdiction should 
extend. At the Cincinnati Convention of 1886, 
President Gordon declared “ The scope of the 
Association is the extended scope of the societies 
which compose it. * * * Its mission is to 
remedy universal cruelties by universal remedies, 
to foster a national recognition of the duties we | 
owe those who are helpless, to spread knowledge 
on humane organizations where such do not 
exist.” 

Several times the question of disbanding 
the Association was discussed, notably at the 
Pittsburgh Convention of 1884. Even some 
whose names rank high in the history of the 
movement favored this course, but the Associa- 
tion held on. Its income, however, was far from 


260 Humane Society Leaders in America 


being assured, and officers, agents and organiz- 
ers were appointed intermittently and only for 
short periods, the expense being borne usually 
by a few persons specially interested. At the 
Buffalo meeting, in 1901, Dr. William O. Still- 
man, then on the Executive Committee, in a 
paper on “The Problems of Humane Exten- 
sion,” came out strongly for a development of 
the Association and astounded some of his hear- 
ers by advocating that there should be an endow- 
ment of not less than half a million dollars with 
which to put a national work on an adequate foot- 
ing. A year later, at Albany, a special commit- 
tee on organization again recommended that the 
Association be nationally incorporated as “ the 
natural development of any philanthropic move- 
ment where effective work is needed.” There 
was considerable opposition to the proposal, 
some prominent humanitarians fearing that it 
would involve the setting up of a big national 
machine, and that money would flow to a national 
treasury which ought to be devoted to local pur- 
poses. Dr. Stillman, Mrs. Caroline Karle White 
and Mr. James M. Brown were amongst those 
who favored incorporation. By agreement con- 
sideration was deferred to the Cincinnati meet- 
ing, in 1903, when incorporation was definitely 
agreed upon. 

Subsequent events have proved that the fears 
of those who opposed incorporation were ground- 


The American Humane Association 261 


less. While an effective national organization 
has been built up, local humane societies have 
benefited rather than suffered, financially and in 
other ways. Many societies have been preserved 
from extinction, others have been reorganized 
and saved. In times of crisis local societies have 
had the help of the national body in their strug- 
gles. The Association has brought about cohe- 
sion, it has inspired local societies to greater ef- 
fort, lifted them from the depths of hopeless 
despair and pointed the way to a successful 
future. Many societies which have become pros- 
perous have freely admitted that much of their 
success is the direct result of the guidance and 
encouragement received from national head- 
quarters, and from its traveling agents and 
organizers. | 

An important part of the missionary work of 
The American Humane Association has been 
shown by its publication of a large amount of 
leaflet literature. Tons upon tons of these leaf- 
lets have been widely distributed either by sale at 
cost or free of charge. The demand for these 
humane tracts has been marvelously large. They 
have served to create humane sentiment; also to 
furnish necessary advice where people desired to 
start new anticruelty societies or where reforms 
were demanded. A leaflet entitled “ First Aid to 
Small Animals” has supplemented the one 
printed on “First Aid for Horses,” which was 


262 Humane Society Leaders in America 


distributed on request and without charge to the 
extent of 150,000 copies. 

Many very valuable leaflets on “ Humane 
Education ” have been printed and widely dis- 
tributed. The Association has very actively 
pushed the work of introducing instruction in 
humane education, hoping to gain entrance into 
all public schools in the United States. ‘'wenty- 
three states already have laws requiring such 
teaching. In this connection the Association is 
now planning for the creation of a training 
school, or college, where humane agents may 
receive special instruction to fit them, not only 
for office or field work, for local societies, and 
for the proper care and management of cases of 
abuse of little children and animals, but espe- 
cially to act as lecturers to give instruction in 
teachers’ training schools and institutes, and be- 
fore public bodies wherever humane instruction 
is required. The American Humane Association, 
through the efforts of President Stillman, 
founded The National Humane Review, which 
is greatly assisting the humane educational work 
being carried on all over the United States and 
in foreign countries. The foreign missionary 
work of the Association has assumed large pro- 
portions and promises even greater development 
in the future. The magazine is proving remark- 
ably acceptable and successful. 

It is a matter of special interest that “ Hu- 


The American Humane Association 263 


mane Sunday” and “Be Kind to Animals 
Week ” were introduced into the United States 
through the initiative and efforts of The Ameri- 
can Humane Association, which has done much 
to make these occasions the great yearly celebra- 
tion of the humane world in this country. The 
yearly delivery of Mercy Sunday sermons by 
clergymen in England had been in vogue for 
some time before it was taken up on this side of 
the Atlantic. It remained for Americans to de- 
velop the idea of a week being set aside for 
special secular observances in behalf of mercy 
and kindness. During this week visits are made 
to shelters for children and animals, proclama- 
tions are issued by many governors and mayors, 
pet animal shows are held and work horse 
parades are conducted. There are exhibits of 
humane posters and of bird houses; humane lit- 
erature is distributed and special humane relief 
work done. Addresses, personally and by radio, 
are made before men’s and women’s clubs, at 
schools and special gatherings. Many schools 
have appropriate exercises, which are assisted by 
Boy and Girl Scouts; medals are given, humane 
motion picture films are shown and the news- 
papers print humane stories. Humane publicity 
is the keynote of the observance and banners and © 
placards are plentifully exhibited in stores, on 
houses and wagons, and on animals. People 


264 Humane Society Leaders in America 


wear humane buttons, and sometimes animals are 
similarly decorated. 

Humane Sunday has been very largely ob- 
served by the churches, especially since several de- 
nominations have publicly declared in favor of hu- 
mane education. Thousands of pulpits proclaim 
the duty of humanity. The text “ Blessed are 
the Merciful ” is frequently chosen as a theme for 
discourses. Tens of thousands of humane post- 
ers are made by school children for prizes, for in 
this way they become greatly interested in hu- 
mane education and anticruelty problems. More 
is being done in these ways for humane advance- 
ment than the world realizes and the next genera- 
tion of Americans will show the result by a 
higher and nobler grade of citizenship. These 
observances may well be imitated in every coun- 
TGY2 

One of the most important reforms which the 
Association has undertaken has been the preven- 
tion of cruel trapping. It has been found that 
millions of small animals, and sometimes birds 
and domestic animals in great numbers, have 
been seized by steel traps and left to die terrible 
deaths. Traps are often not visited by the trap- 
per for days. The animals held in traps are apt to 
die from starvation, or cold, often suffering lin- 
gering agony. Some are eaten alive by their 
natural enemies. Muskrats have had their eyes 
picked out by crows. The number of animals 


The American Humane Association 265 


involved is estimated by Dr. Hornaday to 
amount to thirty millions yearly. Public senti- 
ment is beginning to awaken. Reform will 
come. Fur farms save much lingering suffering. 
Humane traps, which kill animals instantly, are 
gaining public favor. 

During recent years the work of The Ameri- 
can Humane Association has steadily extended. 
This is the end which has been constantly sought 
and the best proof of its success. Calls for its aid 
have come from all parts of the United States. 
The response has been limited only by the funds 
at its disposal which enables it to employ agents, 
and while the income has increased the calls upon 
the Association have increased in still greater 
proportion. An endowment has been created, 
although it is far from the goal set by Dr. Still- 
man in his address at the Buffalo meeting and 
the actual needs of the Association. Without 
question it is inadequate for the needs of the 
work and should be greatly increased so as to 
safeguard the future of national humane opera- 
tions. 

Among the numerous investigations into 
cruelties of unusual proportions may be men- 
tioned the oilfields investigations of 1922 and 
1923. In this instance the investigation referred 
particularly to the Arkansas oilfields, although 
it was also shown that great cruelties had been 
practised in other fields. In the greed to open 


266 Humane Society Leaders in America 


up new sources of oil heavy machinery was 
hauled by mule teams through fields until they 
were converted into bogs and morasses. ‘To force 
the animals to do the almost impossible, mules 
were. whipped, beaten and pounded until they 
dropped. The Arkansas highways in many 
places were little better than the bogs that were 
encountered on the sidetracks to the wells, and 
reports were received of mules being drowned 
in the deep mud-holes while straining at their 
loads. Publication of the facts in newspapers 
throughout the United States brought about an 
improvement in the situation, but even at the best, 
conditions were bad, due to the fact that most 
people in the oil regions apparently thought only 
of financial gain and the public authorities took 
no real steps to end the abuses. 

Among the services which have been rendered 
to local humane work, the sending of experts 
from headquarters, in times of need, has resulted 
advantageously. In many sections local diffi- 
culties have been relieved. Societies have been 
aided in campaigns to secure funds; others have 
sought guidance in the preparation of plans for 
the general development of their work. As a 
result the movement has made great advances 
in many sections, for the work has been extended 
and shelters and other buildings have been 
erected. Hundreds of lectures also have been 
given by representatives from headquarters, fre- 


The American Humane Association 267 


quently resulting in a more favorable attitude 
on the part of the public. Many cities have been 
induced to turn over to anticruelty societies for 
animals the public pounds, together with the 
work of collecting and disposing of stray, home- 
less and unlicensed dogs, thus doing away with 
the horrors of many ill-managed city pounds. 

One of the important undertakings of The 
American Humane Association has been its in- 
troduction into the United States of interna- 
tional humane conferences. The first one to be 
held was that which met at Washington, D. C., 
under the honorary presidency of Wm. H. Taft, 
President of the United States. This was held 
on October 10-15, 1910, and was very largely 
attended by humanitarians from all parts of the 
United States and by representatives from more 
than thirty foreign countries. The deliberations 
of this great gathering resulted in many practical 
reforms. ‘There was an extensive display of hu- 
mane literature, posters and objects of special 
interest, filling several large rooms. ‘The sessions 
of the conference served to bring humanitarians 
together from many countries and to unify hu- 
mane methods and practices. 'The meeting ex- 
cited much commendation and praise. 

On October 22 to 27, 1923, another Interna- 
tional Conference was held in New York City. 
This was largely attended by delegates from at 
home and abroad. Hundreds of Americans took 


268 Humane Society Leaders in America 


part in its proceedings, which were marked by 
harmony and enthusiasm. Special emphasis was 
laid on reforms in slaughterhouse methods and 
transportation abuses, as well as trapping cruel- 
ties and blood sports. Child protection received 
much attention, as many vital topics were dis- 
cussed, including child protection in its broader 
aspects, special policies pursued, and agencies in- 
strumental in child helping. The value of recrea- 
tional facilities and posters in child saving was 
presented. Child protection service in England, 
France, India and Japan was ably discussed; 
also motion picture regulation and the problems 
of delinquency and children’s code commissions. 
The need for children’s shelters and paid agents 
was strongly brought out. The great value of 
International Conferences was emphasized and 
undoubtedly others will follow. 

A. word in reference to some of the earlier 
Presidents. Mr. John G. Shortall in 1884 was 
elected to succeed Mr. Edwin Lee Brown, who 
had held office continuously since 1877, when the 
work was first started. He put new life in the 
movement, but resigned at the end of his term in 
favor of Rev. G. E. Gordon, of Milwaukee, who 
was elected to office during three years, from 
1885 to 1887. Ata meeting held in Toronto in 
1888, Hon. Elbridge T. Gerry, the father of the 
child protection movement, was elected Presi- 
dent. At the end of his term, that sincere hu- 


The American Humane Association 269 


manitarian, Edwin Lee Brown, of Chicago, was 
again elected President by the elections for 1889 
and 1890. He died in 1891, after nearly two 
years in office. Mr. L. H. Eaton, of Pittsburgh, 
was then elected for the years 1891 and 1892. 
Mr. Shortall was again elected President in 1892 
and served until 1898. During his Presidency 
he presided over an International Humane Con- 
gress, held in Chicago in 1893. 

At the Columbus meeting in 1899, Mr. J. M. 
Brown, of Toledo, Ohio, was elected President 
and served until succeeded by President Still- 
man, in 1905, except for a period at the close of 
President Brown’s term, when Dr. Albert Lef- 
fingwell served part of aterm. Mr. Brown was 
President of the Toledo Humane Society until 
his death in 1909. It was during his administra- 
tion that the Association was incorporated, under 
the laws of the District of Columbia, in 1903. 

It would require a volume to recite in detail 
the work of the men and women who have con- 
tributed to the success of the Association. 
Among those who have served as honorary vice- 
presidents may be mentioned several Presidents 
of the United States, notably Hon. Grover Cleve- 
land, Hon. Warren G. Harding and Hon. Calvin 
Coolidge, while former President Wm. H. Taft 
has been listed among such officers for about 
eighteen years and has always shown marked 
personal interest. Of prominent ecclesiastics, 


270 Humane Society Leaders in America 


there may be mentioned the names of Cardinals 
Gibbons and Dougherty; Rt. Rev. James F., 
Sweeny, D.D.; Rev. Charles Scanlon, LL.D.; 

Rev. S. Z. Baie D.D., and others who pave 
been honorary vice-presidents. Many splendid 
women are also included in this list, such as that 
genuine humanitarian Minnie Maddern Fiske; 
Mrs. George T. Angell, the devoted wife of the 
great humane pioneer, and Mrs. Jack London, 
whose husband’s labors caused the starting of the 
Jack London Clubs and reforms in behalf of per- 
forming animals. Senator Peter G. Gerry, the 
oldest son of the illustrious founder and builder 
of child protection work, has long been closely as- 
sociated with The American Humane Associa- 
tion, as its first Vice-President and one of its 
most valued directors. Senator Gerry’s labors 
for the humane cause have been of great value 
and stamp him as a worthy son of a noble sire. 





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